The Braves added another piece to their revamped bullpen by signing left-hander Josh Outman to a one-year, $925,000 contract Wednesday.
Outman, 30, was 4-0 with a 2.86 ERA in 40 appearances for the Yankees and Indians in 2014, and his .229 opponents’ average included .169 (10-for-59) by left-handed batters. He signed a major-league contract that includes up to $475,000 in additional performance incentives, and he won’t be eligible for free agency until after the 2016 season.
The Braves also finalized free-agent contracts with reliever Jason Grilli and catcher A.J. Pierzysnki after the veterans passed their physicals Wednesday. They had agreed to terms with Grilli on Dec. 23 and with Pierzynki on Christmas Eve.
Infielder Tyler Pastornicky was designated for assignment Wednesday to open a roster spot.
The Outman signing came a week after the Braves traded rookie lefty Chasen Shreve along with setup man David Carpenter to the Yankees for starting prospect Manny Banuelos, which left Luis Avilan and James Russell as Atlanta’s only returning lefty relievers. Avilan struggled in 2014 and Russell might compete for the fifth-starter job, though the bullpen still seems a more likely role for him.
Since debuting in 2008, Outman is 16-11 with a 4.43 ERA in 161 appearances (32 starts) with four teams, and his .186 opponents’ average against lefty hitters ranks eighth among relievers who’ve faced at least 300 batters in that span.
A 10th-round draft pick by the Phillies in 2005, he debuted with Oakland in 2008 and pitched in 33 games (25 starts) during parts of three seasons with the Athletics. He missed the 2010 season recovering from Tommy John elbow surgery.
After he was traded to Colorado in January 2012, Outman struggled one season as a starter and reliever before moving to exclusively a bullpen role and posting a 4.33 ERA in a career-high 61 appearances in 2013. He had 53 strikeouts in 54 innings that season, but also allowed 56 hits and 23 walks, with righties hitting .347 (34-for-98).
Last season he faced fewer righties as the season progressed and performed better than ever, particularly against lefties.
“I think I just really focused on the reliever, and I had a specific job last year,” Outman said. “When I first got moved to the bullpen I still wasn’t sure that’s where I was going to end up. I kind of had in the back of my mind that I should be starting at some point; our rotation wasn’t doing so well in Colorado. I was able to mentally get past that block (last year) and embrace what I was doing as a reliever.
“Tito (Indians manager Terry Francona) really gave me a job to do and I was able to mentally prepare for the situations and what I needed to do to make it work for the situations I was going to be in. I was able to get more focus on, this is kind of the niche that’s been carved out and this is what I need to do to be successful at that.”
Outman figures to be used primarily against lefty batters by the Braves, who have plenty of hard-throwing right-hander setup or middle relievers including a group of newcomers that includes free-agent signees Grilli and Jim Johnson, who are both former closers, ex-Angel Michael Kohn and trade acquisition Arodys Vizcaino.
“I figured out last year that I can do that, that I can be successful at that,” Outman said of the situational role. “I think that given my abilities, I can do more than that. But if that’s what I’m called upon to do I know I can be successful at that and I can give the team what they need.”
