2021 Braves Spring Training Roster and Invitees

[rico43]

Revised after cuts of March 12th.

[Dalyn]

I feel like Kazmar is going to make the team. He looks really good out there so far. Hope he can keep it up.

[msstate7]

What you the braves do with Jones and edwards?

[clvclv]

What you the braves do with Jones and edwards?

Both are apparently on straight minor league deals with no forced roster dates - they can be tucked away in Gwinnett until someone gets hurt - or Webb could be sent down to make room for one of them.

[Carp]

I know it's only ST, but surely to goodness we can find a place for Kazmar. I know he's 35. I know his minor track suggests he'll most likely be way over-matched. But he's clearly earned a position over Camargo and will make league minimum. I just can't for the life of me understand why we would guarantee 1.3 million to Camargo who is also likely to be terrible and isn't good defensively at any position other than 3b. I also find it unlikely anyone claims him or gives him a guarenteed major league deal, so we could just as easily cut him, re-sign him, and assign him to AAA.

[clvclv]

Wright and Webb optioned - looks like Wilson has won the 5th SP spot and they're going to keep at least one of Jones or Edwards.

[Hulavol]

Wilson wins 5th spot. Hope he can handle it !

[msstate7]

Wilson wins 5th spot. Hope he can handle it !

Good for him

[Buzzworm]

I’d be shocked if Edwards isn’t on the opening day roster.He’s earned a spot imo

[rico43]

Wilson's option seemed to be a surprise, but with two early off-days, his turn would likely come up once in the first weeks of the season. It seems that Ynoa/bullpen will fill that role.
Jones earned his spot; no word on Edwards mid-day through Sunday. Touki goes on 60-day; this has rotator cuff issues written all over it.
Jackson selected over Contreras so the latter can learn and work every day at AAA. This is the final year of d'Arnaud's two-year deal, so...
Pudge Sandoval's bat was decided to be more valuable than Camargo's arm. Really wish the Braves would trade him to a team to use every day.
Inciarte will be Ozuna's caddy, making left field the most expensive position for 2021, No shock Lamb was axed; didn't hit and didn't field. Irvin outrighted to AAA; could easily see him again if he starts off hot.

[JohnAdcox]

I feel like Kazmar is going to make the team. He looks really good out there so far. Hope he can keep it up.

With all sincerity, I'd rather have him on there roster, even if it means losing Luke Jackson. Or somebody.

[Enscheff]

Having 10 BP arms on the roster of 26 with only 4 bench bats seems like an unfunny joke.

Is a 14 man pitching staff common around the league this year?

[bravesfanMatt]

Since all 14 pitchers are superior hitters to ender then it starts to make more sense.

[Carp]

Having 10 BP arms on the roster of 26 with only 4 bench bats seems like an unfunny joke.

Is a 14 man pitching staff common around the league this year?

The Braves are pioneers. In 5-10 years you'll see everyone doing it as they try to play catch up after we win 5 straight WS titles.

[JohnAdcox]

Having 10 BP arms on the roster of 26 with only 4 bench bats seems like an unfunny joke.

Free Kazmar!

[msstate7]

Guess the thinking behind more arms is the braves will still be weak on bench adding a subpar bench guy, but adding another good arm makes a good pen even stronger

[clvclv]

Having 10 BP arms on the roster of 26 with only 4 bench bats seems like an unfunny joke.

Is a 14 man pitching staff common around the league this year?

Would you rather carry Camargo for a few days and take the chance that Snitker would actually try to find a way to get him into a game? I'd just as soon give Fried a PH appearance before that happens.

The criticisms of AA's lack of attention to the bench are warranted at this point - there's NO ONE with options available to carry as that extra bat for the first week that you want to be burning service time on. You don't want Contreras on the roster if he's being sent down to delay his clock, Waters/Shewmake/Harris aren't options, and the journeyman OF group was so bad that they couldn't even beat Ender out. The funniest thing about it is that you don't even have enough bodies on the bench (completely discounting whether they can hit or not) to use as PHs to get to all the arms in the pen.

Not carrying Kipnis instead of one of Newk or Ynoa kinda seems lazy IMO - if Kipnis re-signed before Opening Day, what makes you think couldn't cut him again after the bullpen game and still get him back? You could've used some of the money you would have saved by cutting Camargo to pay the $100,000 retention bonus and have kept him the entire time. This nickel-and-dime approach and dancing around service time clocks leads to having bad benches. Players passed on who would have made this team/bench worlds better are making peanuts, but apparently AA couldn't afford Planters - only the Wal Mart kind...

Mazara - $1.75 million
Joyce - $1.5 million
Bruce - $1.35 million
Maybin - ???
Reddick - still unsigned
Cabrera - $1.75 million
Frazier - $1.5 million
Shaw - $1.5 million

Signing the most-expensive one of those guys and cutting Camargo when he should have been cut would have cost less than $500K. Cutting Jackson way back when would have meant you carry Webb and save almost enough money to sign Cabrera. Really depressing when you consider the fact that AA could have signed Bruce and Cabrera for $3.1 million and instead he's paying Jackson and Camargo $3.26 million. That $160K plus the $1 million Panda gets would have covered Webb and Newk or Ynoa's salaries and would mean payroll would not be any different than it is today.

Really hurts my feelings to look at benches consisting of A-Jax/Panda/Adrianza/Kipnis/Ender and A-Jax/Bruce/Cabrera/Adrianza/Ender side-by-side and realize we could have had the latter one without changing the payroll.

[bravesfanMatt]

Who would want sutter or melky on our bench. They are old anyways.

[50PoundHead]

There is really no excuse for the bench construction. There just isn't. Sandoval is pretty much a 1B only guy at this stage of his career and Kipnis basically plays "bat," which just won't fly on a short bench. A lot of guys were on the market this winter, but Anthopoulos really went to the remainder rack at the Dollar Store.

[Enscheff]

I can’t disagree about the bench construction. Paying someone like Camargo to sit in AAA is a waste of resources, especially when it’s been apparent for a while he isn’t an MLB quality utility player.