The Braves reached agreement with free agent pitcher Gavin Floyd Monday, finalizing a one-year $4 million deal, with an additional $4.5 million in incentives, according to a source familiar with the situation.
Floyd, 30, is seven months removed from Tommy John surgery and barring setbacks could return as early as May. Floyd passed his physical in Atlanta on Monday before the deal was finalized.
Floyd averaged 12 wins per season for five years with the Chicago White Sox before last season when he went 0-4 with a 5.18 ERA and underwent elbow surgery on May 7. He is 70-70 with a 4.48 ERA overall in 199 games in 10 seasons with the Phillies and White Sox.
Floyd’s surgery performed by Dr. David Altcheck repaired tears in both his ulnar collateral ligament and his flexor tendon. Initial reports projected his recovery time to be 14 to 19 months, but Floyd’s agent Michael Moye has said he’s progressing well in his recovery. Floyd was on track to start throwing off a mound earlier this month.
The right-hander gives the Braves some depth and a veteran presence they were seeking to add to their rotation, which lost Tim Hudson to free agency. Floyd, a former first-round pick (No. 4 overall) of the Phillies in 2001, had his best season in 2008, going 17-8 with a 3.84 ERA for the AL Central champion White Sox.
The Braves had set out looking for a top-of-the-rotation caliber pitcher this offseason but downshifted into a mode of adding depth when prices on the free agent market soared (38-year-old Hudson got two years and $23 million from the Giants, 40-year-old Bartolo Colon signed with the Mets for two years and $20 million.)
The trade market has proved expensive too, in terms of prospects, and the Braves aren’t willing to cash in some of the top pitching prospects teams are asking for pitchers like David Price and Jeff Samardzija. The Braves had expressed interest in Samardzija, the Cubs power pitcher, but such a move appears less likely now.
