In the weeks leading to Tuesday’s trade deadline, everyone tried to guess the true sellers in the market. After all, so many teams appeared to be on the bubble of contention, which left you wondering whether those clubs would be inclined to trade from their major-league rosters.
One true seller all along: The Colorado Rockies, who have now supplied the Braves with two relievers in the past eight days.
The Braves on Tuesday acquired left-handed reliever Brad Hand from Colorado for minor-league righty Alec Barger. Hand will slot immediately into the Braves’ bullpen, which also received a boost when Colorado sent Pierce Johnson there last week.
“He’s great,” Johnson said. “Super quiet at first, but when he really breaks out of his shell, he’s hilarious. He’s a really, really funny guy. He’s had a great career. … He’s confident, been in big-time situations, he’s pitched in big-time situations. So he’s going to be a great addition to the team. Honestly, I’m super stoked to have him.”
Added Kirby Yates, who played with Hand in San Diego: “He’s kind of quiet, but he’s good. He’s fun to be around, he’s a good time. He’s a good competitor, and he wants the ball. He likes to pitch a lot. He’s one of those guys that kind of never turns the ball down. He’s ready to go every day. I think everybody knows the kind of stuff he has.”
The 33-year-old Hand is a three-time All-Star who was one of the better closers in baseball years ago. He has a 3.66 career ERA over 754 innings. He has 131 career saves, with his best years coming from 2016-20, when he played for San Diego and then Cleveland.
He’s also an uncomfortable at-bat for left-handed hitters. Over Hand’s career, lefties have hit only .190 with a .568 OPS against him. In 2023, left-handed hitters are 7-for-49, with no home runs, versus Hand.
“Especially when we get Dylan (Lee) back, having that third lefty will be really big,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “(Hand has) been doing this for a long time and been very successful. It’s good. I think it’s a good addition.”
In the spring, Hand signed a one-year deal with the Rockies. It included a $7 million club option with a $500,000 buyout. But the deal stipulated that, if Hand were traded during the season, the team option would become a mutual option.
With Tuesday’s trade, that’s now a mutual option. True to its name, this means that both parties – Hand and the Braves – must agree to exercise the option for 2024. If that doesn’t occur, Hand will receive the buyout and become a free agent.
Hand throws a sweeper, a four-seam fastball and a sinker. His sweeper induces the highest percentage of whiffs from opponents.
Is the pitch as advertised?
“Absolutely,” Johnson said. “And especially in this humidity, I think it’s going to be great. Pitching in Colorado is tough at times, when you’re trying to make the adjustment going back and forth, at home and on the road – you keep doing that all year. I think when he finally gets here, it’s just going to be great. I just can’t wait for him to pitch in some high-leverage (situations) for us.”
At first glance, Hand is not a splashy addition. But the Braves probably didn’t need one. In their bullpen, Raisel Iglesias and A.J. Minter are the most prominent late-inning options. Joe Jiménez recently emerged. The club should soon get Dylan Lee back, and Nick Anderson is expected to return in early September. The Braves believed they added terrific stuff in Johnson, who was Hand’s teammate in Colorado.
Hand will not need to slam the door late in games or to work out of every jam. The Braves shouldn’t have to rely on him that way.
Instead, they added a good reliever to a stable of good relievers. He should improve their bullpen.
Barger, who heads to Colorado, had a 3.29 ERA over 30 games – all relief appearances – for Double-A Mississippi before the trade. He struck out 48 batters over 38-1/3 innings. The Braves drafted Barger, now 25 years old, in the 17th round in 2019. Barger was not considered to be one of the team’s better prospects, but he’s having a nice season.
The Braves entered Tuesday with MLB’s best record, at 67-37. Unlike some other clubs, they do not have glaring holes. Sure, they had areas in which they could improve. But they didn’t need to be desperate to do so.
But a lot can happen between now and October. Talent is important. But so is depth. The Braves are adept at working on the margins.
Recently, Yates was talking to a reporter about how a strong bullpen can be a major factor in winning the World Series. “It was in our case, two years ago,” Snitker said of that point. “That was one of the reasons we won a World Series.” Yates believes the Braves have built another deep bullpen, though he acknowledged every reliever must continue getting outs.
“I think the trick is, how do you keep everybody sharp? You know what I mean?” Yates said. “Because we’re all going to slide into our roles, and there are going to be guys that don’t pitch a lot; there’s going to be guys that pitch a lot. That’s just the nature of the bullpen. So it’s, how do you keep everybody sharp?
“(Pitching coach Rick Kranitz) and (Snitker) have been around for a while, and so they know how to do that. I think when you’re coming down into August and September, where you manage games and you start managing games a little bit different, I think that’s kind of where everybody is going to be able to step up and get the ball, and be able to produce on a high level.”
The Braves have a lineup full of elite players. Their rotation, when at full strength, should be one of baseball’s best. They have a good bullpen.
But they are clearly counting on nothing. In the past eight days, the Braves have added Johnson, Hand and utility infielder Nicky Lopez. And they used Taylor Hearn – a lefty they acquired last week – to get Lopez. The moves have raised their roster’s floor.
The Braves are excited to add Hand.
“I think he’s very equipped to come in here and get some big outs for us, for sure,’ Yates said.
