The Braves quietly made a couple of roster moves with relievers this week, outrighting both left-hander Ian Krol and right-hander Armando Rivero to Triple-A Gwinnett.
Krol was dropped from the 40-man roster and cleared waivers after a disappointing season in which he posted a 5.33 ERA in 51 appearances, totaling a solid 44 strikeouts in 49 innings, but allowing 21 walks and 50 hits, including a career-high eight home runs.
He avoided arbitration last winter, agreeing to a $900,000 deal after the 26-year-old had a good season in his first year with the Braves in 2016 (3.18 ERA in career-high 63 appearances). But after allowing a .324 opponents’ OBP and .701 opponents’ OPS in 2016, Krol saw those numbers jump to .350 and .803 in 2017, with lefty batters hitting .291 against him with a .367 OBP and .822 OPS.
Rivero, 29, spent the entire season on the disabled list after straining his pitching shoulder during spring training. He was transferred from the 10-day DL to the 60-day DL in July when the Braves needed a 40-man roster spot.
Rivero was a Rule 5 Draft pick from the Cubs in December after piling up 105 strikeouts with 35 walks in 67 2/3 innings in Triple-A in 2016, when the Cuban had a 2.13 ERA in 43 appearances. If he’d been activated from the DL at any point, he would’ve had to go on the Braves’ 25-man major league roster for at least 90 days or be offered back to the Cubs for $50,000.
But the fact that Rivero was removed from the roster and outrighted to Triple-A means he cleared waivers, and the Cubs declined to take him back.
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