Kelly Johnson is a Brave once again.
Roughly six months after being traded away by Atlanta, Johnson was back at Turner Field on Saturday, taking part of FanFest festivities. In January, he signed a one-year deal with the Braves, rejoining the club that drafted him.
“It’s nice to come back to an organization and feel like it’s kind of your home,” Johnson said. “I feel like I a Brave. That’s who drafted me, who I came up with, so I was very, very happy to get a phone call this offseason from John (Schuerholz).”
Johnson played his first four seasons with Atlanta and has spent time with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and New York Mets. He played 62 games with the Braves last season, before being sent to the Mets in July along with Juan Uribe in exchange for minor-league prospects John Gant and Rob Whalen.
Entering his third stint in Atlanta, Johnson adds versatility to the Braves’ roster as he enters his third stint in Atlanta.
“I feel like I can play a lot of different positions,” Johnson said. “Being left-handed, obviously gives me a lot of opportunities for at-bats. I’ve started to get a little more comfortable with pinch-hitting, as much as you can be. It’s still the hardest thing to do in this game, I swear. But it’s whatever they need me to do.”
