The Braves have moved on from Danny Young and added another left-handed arm to the bullpen mix, selecting Ray Kerr to the 40-man roster while designating Young for assignment.
Young’s stint in Atlanta had been building toward a tougher ending. He spent last year rehabbing after reconstructive elbow surgery, then signed a split deal with the Braves for the 2026 season. After a handful of rehab outings at the end of June, Atlanta activated him from the 60-day injured list on July 3 and dropped him into the bullpen.
For a while, the results looked solid enough on the surface. Young turned in a 2.08 ERA over 8 2/3 innings in 12 appearances during July and got a lot of ground balls along the way.
But the underlying numbers were less reassuring. He struck out eight batters that month and also walked eight, while giving up plenty of hard contact and stranding 95.6% of baserunners, a number that was never likely to hold.
August brought the slide. In four appearances this month, Young has given up nine earned runs on nine hits in 3 2/3 innings. That stretch included mop-up work in yesterday’s 10-3 loss to the Diamondbacks, when he was charged with three earned runs.
It’s a rough turn for a pitcher who has barely had a chance to establish himself in the majors since his 2024 season with the Mets. That year, Young posted a 4.54 ERA in 37 2/3 relief innings, striking out 29.1% of hitters while walking 10.9%.
He also generated ground balls at a 53.3% clip, and metrics like his 3.64 FIP and 3.22 SIERA pointed to a pitcher who may have been better than the ERA suggested. A shoulder injury has kept him from proving that more recently.
Since the start of 2025, he has thrown just 20 2/3 innings between the Mets and Braves.
Young has less than two years of service time, but because the Braves previously outrighted him in 2022, he can reject another outright assignment and choose free agency if he clears waivers. His split contract carried a $925K salary for time spent in the majors. If another club wants him as a lefty depth piece, it could let him become a free agent and then sign him for the prorated league minimum.
Kerr gets the call in Young’s place. The 31-year-old has been in the Braves organization since 2024 and posted a 5.64 ERA in 22 1/3 innings before Tommy John surgery shut him down in the middle of that season.
He didn’t pitch in 2025 while rehabbing, then returned for a few rehab appearances in July and was activated from the minor league injured list on July 29. He had most recently been working at Triple-A Gwinnett, where he allowed two earned runs in four innings over three appearances.
Atlanta’s bullpen has had a shaky second half overall. Since the All-Star break, the group has a 4.89 ERA, which ranks fifth-worst in the league, and closer Raisel Iglesias has allowed runs in three of his five most recent outings.
The left-handed group has been better than that broader bullpen picture, with Dylan Dodd posting a 1.50 ERA in his last 12 innings, Dylan Lee carrying a 3.65 ERA over his last 12 1/3 frames, and Brent Suter providing steady work since arriving at the trade deadline. Kerr gives the Braves another option for lower-leverage innings, though with his limited recent track record, he could also be the next arm shuffled out if Atlanta needs to keep cycling fresh pitchers through the roster.
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