The Braves signed three pitchers to minor league contracts including veteran right-hander Chris Volstad and a pair from the independent-league ranks, which Atlanta has mined with some success in recent seasons. Olnly Volstad’s contract includes an invitation to major league spring training.
Connor Little, 25, was rated the No. 8 independent-league prospect by Baseball America and posted a 1.70 ERA and 0.824 WHIP (walks-plus-hits per inning pitched) in 51 appearances last season in two leagues. The 6-foot-6 right-hander had a 1.19 ERA and 90 strikeouts with 14 walks in 68 innings (47 appearances) for Evansville in the Frontier League.
Left-hander Bryan Morgado, a Phillies fourth-round draft pick in 2010 out of the University of Tennessee, spent parts of three seasons in the Phillies organization without making it past high Single-A ball. He pitched the past three seasons in independent leagues and was 4-6 with a 4.00 ERA in 32 games (10 starts) for Lancaster of the Atlantic League in 2015, totaling 71 strikeouts and 28 walks in 72 innings.
The hope, of course, is that another Brandon Beachy or Brandon Cunniff – two recent Braves pitchers who previously toiled in indy-league ball – could come from the relative obscurity of an independent league to contribute at the big-league level.
Volstad, 29 is much more of a known commodity, having spent parts of seven seasons in the majors with the Marlins, Cubs, Rockies and Pirates. He has a 35-51 career record and 4.92 ERA in 131 games (123 starts), and a two-inning relief appearance for the Pirates last season was the only game he’s pitched in the majors since 2013.
Still, the Braves think Volstad, a former Marlins first-round draft pick – the No. 16 selection in the 2005 draft – could compete for a spot in the spring or help at some point next season. He was 11-7 with a 3.18 ERA in 27 games (25 starts) for the Pirates’ Triple-A team in 2015 and allowed just three homers in 155 2/3 innings.
