Jordan Montgomery helped the Rangers win their first World Series in 2023, but since then, things haven’t gone so well for him. First, he had a rough trip through free agency, then pitched poorly after signing a one-year deal with Arizona, left Scott Boras’ agency, publicly blasted Boras, got blasted by Diamondbacks managing partner Ken Kendrick… and underwent his second Tommy John surgery, which cost him all of the 2025 season. While rehabbing, he was even traded to the Brewers in a salary dump. After all that drama, now he’s a Ranger again.

On Wednesday morning, the day after Rangers pitchers and catchers reported to the team’s spring training facility in Surprise, Arizona, the Dallas Morning News’ Evan Grant reported that the 33-year-old lefty will join Texas on a one-year deal with a $1.25 million base salary and as-yet-unreported incentives. Montgomery had his surgery last April 1, so he won’t be ready until sometime in midseason, but the hope is that he can help the Rangers down the stretch.

With camps opening this week, Montgomery isn’t the only free agent who’s found a new home. On Tuesday, fellow starter Aaron Civale signed a one-year contract with the A’s, while Montgomery’s former Rangers batterymate Jonah Heim inked a one-year deal with the Braves. I’ll round all of these up below. Read the rest of this entry »

One of the things that happens when pitchers and catchers report to camp is that managers update everyone on any unreported offseason developments. Unfortunately, few of those updates are about fun new cocktails they tried or animals they saw on vacation. It brings me no pleasure to tell you I have yet to see one single beat reporter file a story about a manager who saw a really cool sea turtle while snorkeling. Most of those developments are injuries, which meant that Tuesday was at once a glorious rite of the coming spring and an unbearably heavy dump of unpleasant injury news. Today we’re going to focus on the depressing dump, so courtesy of Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner, here’s a gorgeous picture that captures the eternal hope of spring training as a little pre-casualty report treat to soften the blow.

Wow. That was beautiful. Thank you, Andy. Now we’ll get miserable, but please remember that it could always be worse. We could be back in the 1880s, when the unpleasant health updates weren’t about who broke their hamate bone, but about who died of consumption. (The preceding sentence was originally intended to be a joke, but guess what.) Read the rest of this entry »

Over the weekend, Ha-Seong Kim’s whirlwind offseason took a jarring tumble. After opting out of his contract with the Braves (really his contract with the Rays, which the Braves assumed after they claimed him off waivers), he turned around and signed a one-year, $20 million deal to remain in Atlanta. But disaster struck when he slipped on a sheet of ice and tore a tendon in his right middle finger. That injury required surgery that will sideline Kim for four to five months, including roughly the first two months of the regular season.

This will be the second straight season where Kim misses significant time due to injury. In late 2024, he tore his labrum on a pickoff throw, then injured his hamstring and later his calf while rehabbing, costing him the first half of 2025. He then hit the IL twice with back injuries last year. In all, he managed just 191 plate appearances and looked understandably rusty.

That star-crossed sequence has to raise questions about the future course of Kim’s career. How could it not? It’s not so much that any of these injuries are devastating on their own, but this much missed playing time over two-plus years of his prime is no laughing matter. Last year, he never hit his stride after a late start. This year, it’s fair to expect more of the same. Even without knowing how Kim’s injured finger might affect him upon his return, our projection systems have him down for a below-average offensive line. Read the rest of this entry »

The following article is part of Jay Jaffe’s ongoing look at the candidates on the BBWAA 2026 Hall of Fame ballot. For a detailed introduction to this year’s ballot, and other candidates in the series, use the tool above; an introduction to JAWS can be found here. For a tentative schedule, see here. All WAR figures refer to the Baseball Reference version unless otherwise indicated.

Early in his career, Nick Markakis appeared to be a star in the making. In his second and third seasons in the majors (2007 and ’08), the former first-round pick topped 40 doubles, 20 homers, and a .300 batting average while slugging nearly .500. He led the AL in WAR in 2008, his age-24 campaign — not that anyone was aware of it at the time, which helps to explain his omission from that year’s AL All-Star team.

It would take another decade before Markakis finally became an All-Star, and during that stretch, his performances leveled off. He became better known for his durability, his defense (he won three Gold Gloves), and above all, the example he set for younger players while enduring lean years both in Baltimore and Atlanta. He stuck around long enough to help both teams’ rebuilding efforts come to fruition with playoff appearances, racking up so many hits that he generated discussion regarding his potential Hall-worthiness if he persisted long enough to reach the magic 3,000-hit milestone.

Markakis’ retirement after his age-36 season rendered that question moot. He didn’t generate a Hall-caliber résumé or gaudy statistics during his 15-year career, but he received considerable praise for his impact on his teammates. From Braves manager Brian Snitker, who managed him from 2016–20:

“One of the most consistent, professional pros that I’ve ever been around. I’m glad I had the honor to manage him in his last years, because he’s a special player… How consistent he was, how professional he was, the way he played the game, how he grinded every at-bat. He never took a pitch off. And to see what he did late in his career, winning that Gold Glove, and the stabilizing force that he was for our club while I was here. You don’t appreciate a guy like Nick until you manage him. What a great career he had.”

Read the rest of this entry »

Analyst, Research & Development

If you are driven to deliver exceptional fan experiences that are beyond anything possible elsewhere and interested in working alongside a team of innovators and enthusiastic over-achievers, you will enjoy working with us!

Position Overview:
The R&D Analyst position will assist Baseball Operations decision-making through the analysis and research of baseball information. The day-to-day responsibilities of this position will revolve around using data analysis & modeling techniques to provide insight into player evaluation, performance projection, roster construction, and all other facets of baseball operations decision making, with an emphasis on different areas of baseball operations depending on the baseball calendar and needs of the department. The position will report to Assistant General Manager, Research and Development.

Major responsibilities:

• Perform advanced statistical analysis on large datasets in order to assist in the decision making of the Baseball Operations department
• Develop and maintain models, software, reports, or any other information system developed during research
• Complete ad-hoc research projects as requested and present results in a concise manner
• Perform other duties as assigned

Qualifications:

• Must be legally eligible to work in the United States
• 2+ years of full-time work experience in a data science role
• Bachelor’s degree in Statistics, Computer Science, Mathematics, Operations Research, or related quantitative field
• Proven experience with statistical modeling software (Python and/or R)
• Strong foundation in the application of statistical concepts to baseball data, including familiarity with the current state of baseball research
• Working experience with SQL and relational databases
• Familiarity with using version control such as git
• Ability to communicate technical findings to individuals with diverse baseball backgrounds (ability to create effective data visualizations is a plus)
• Ability to work flexible hours, including some nights and weekends as dictated by the Major League season
• Must complete a successful background check

Preferred qualifications:

• Demonstrated statistical research in the sports analytics field
• Ability to and desire to learn other programming languages as needed
• Familiarity with big data techniques
• Exposure to cloud-based technology
• Exposure to computer vision techniques

The Atlanta National League Baseball Club, LLC is an equal opportunity employer. A diverse workforce representing varied backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences is key to delivering on our business promise to our fans and the communities we serve. All qualified candidates are welcome to apply.

If you are disabled as defined by the Americans With Disabilities Act and require a reasonable accommodation in order to complete your online application, including making a change to the application process, please contact our Human Resources team at PeopleCapital@braves.com

To Apply
To apply, please follow this link.

The content in this posting was created and provided solely by the Atlanta Braves.

The following article is part of Jay Jaffe’s ongoing look at the candidates on the BBWAA 2026 Hall of Fame ballot. For a detailed introduction to this year’s ballot, and other candidates in the series, use the tool above; an introduction to JAWS can be found here. For a tentative schedule, see here. All WAR figures refer to the Baseball Reference version unless otherwise indicated.

From being called out publicly by his general manager, manager, and third base coach during an historically wretched season one year, to being robbed of an MVP award after falling just short of a 40-homer, 40-steal campaign the next, Matt Kemp was an enigma. Because he focused more on basketball than baseball growing up, his instincts for the sport sometimes lagged behind his physical abilities, but at his best, he was a superstar, and a sight to behold thanks to his speed and power — a combination of traits that earned him the nickname “The Bison.” He made three All-Star teams and won two Gold Gloves (despite subpar metrics), but unfortunately, a series of injuries to his shoulders and legs compromised those abilities. The $160 million contract he signed after that near-MVP 2011 season became a millstone that sent him from team to team during its eight-year run. Read the rest of this entry »

Well, the Braves must have liked what they saw. After Atlanta claimed Ha-Seong Kim off waivers in September and watched him decline his $16 million option for the 2026 season, the team is bringing him back on a one-year, $20 million contract. In a rare coup, Jon Heyman scooped the Braves by breaking the news before they could slap some text onto their trusty press release template and post a JPEG to social media. (Peter Labuza of Twins Daily made note of the most important part of the deal: The press release featured no mention of Kim donating 1% of his salary to the Atlanta Braves Foundation.) The reunion isn’t necessarily surprising, as president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos expressed interest in bringing Kim back when he opted out. However, the deal represents a departure from Atlanta’s recent strategy, and doesn’t match most of the estimates of what Kim would get in free agency.

This is the first time the Braves have deigned to spend money on the shortstop position since they let Dansby Swanson walk in 2022. They rolled with Orlando Arcia in 2023, and he rewarded them with a 100 wRC+ and 2.4 WAR. When Arcia reverted back to his career norms with a 72 wRC+ in 2023, the Braves got just 0.7 WAR from the position, fifth worst in the league. The punchless, slick-fielding Nick Allen didn’t work out in 2025, prompting the team to claim Kim; on the year, Atlanta’s 0.4 WAR at short was third from the bottom. They recently traded Allen to Houston in exchange for utilityman Mauricio Dubón, who has surprisingly good numbers at short but isn’t really an everyday option. The Braves are clearly sick of having a gaping black hole at short, but you might not be prepared for just how big a departure this is. Swanson made just $10 million in his final year of arbitration, meaning the Braves are about to spend double the amount they’ve ever spent on a shortstop.

Coming into the offseason, most estimates had Kim signing a deal like the one he signed with the Rays last year: two or three years with an opt-out for something like $15 million per year. That made sense, because he was still in a similar position. After a brilliant seven-year KBO career, Kim struggled in his first stateside campaign, then settled in as a reliably above-average middle infielder for the Padres. From 2022 to 2024, he combined great defense with a 106 wRC+, averaging 3.7 WAR per 150 games. That’s a borderline All-Star at a premium position. In 2023, Kim won a Gold Glove and earned some MVP votes. He looked primed for a payday and a long contract heading into free agency. Instead, he tore the labrum in his right shoulder diving back into first base against the Rockies in August 2024. Read the rest of this entry »

The Winter Meetings historically mark the beginning of the signing period for marquee free agents, and this week has seen several stars agreeing to big contracts. But there were also plenty of little deals among the titans, and one of them in particular fascinates me. That deal: The Braves signed Mike Yastrzemski to a two-year, $23 million contract, with a club option for a third year, as Jon Heyman first reported.

There’s a lot to unpack with this one, but we might as well start with Yastrzemski. The 35-year-old outfielder is nothing if not consistent. In a 2025 split between the Giants and the Royals after a deadline deal, he logged his seventh straight season with a WAR total between 1.5 and 2.5. It was his fifth straight year with a wRC+ between 99 and 111, and the third of those five years where it was exactly 106. He played his usual solid outfield defense, and the Royals even felt confident enough in him to occasionally use him in center field. If he’s your best outfielder, your outfield probably isn’t all that good. If he’s your third-best guy, it’s probably great.

But while Yastrzemski’s season looked like the others in terms of his overall line, it was a tale of two halves. In San Francisco, he started slowly and never really got going. He posted the worst contact quality marks of his career while struggling to a below-average line. Then he went to Kansas City and went on a huge heater, for lack of a better way to describe it. Everything got better all at once. Yastrzemski’s barrel rate increased from 7.1% to 10.9% at the same time that his swinging strike rate declined from 8.0% to 5.4%. That’s a neat trick if you can pull it off, and as a result, he hit more homers in KC than in SF in half the plate appearances, all while cutting his strikeout rate to an otherworldly 11.8% and also walking 13.4% of the time. Read the rest of this entry »

Last month, the Braves retained Raisel Iglesias following a rollercoaster season in which he temporarily lost his closer job before reclaiming it and dominating down the stretch. Mind you, a stretch during which the team was playing out the string on its way to an 86-loss season and a fourth-place finish in the NL East. Now Atlanta has added another late-game reliever in Robert Suarez, who after opting out of his deal with the Padres has agreed to a three-year, $45 million contract with the Braves.

Suarez, who will turn 35 on March 1, spent the past four seasons with the Padres after pitching in Japan from 2016–21, a span interrupted by Tommy John surgery in ’17. After a strong stateside debut in 2022, he rejected a $5 million player option and quickly re-signed with San Diego on a five-year, $46 million contract. That deal paid him $10 million annually from 2023–25 and included performance bonuses as well as a pair of $8 million player options, which he declined after this year’s World Series, allowing him to hit the open market. Reportedly, his new deal pays him $13 million in 2026, with salaries of $16 million in both ’27 and ’28; none of the money is deferred. With that, the Braves currently have the relievers with the fifth- and sixth-highest average annual values in the majors, with only Edwin Díaz ($23 million AAV), Josh Hader ($19 million AAV), Tanner Scott ($18 million AAV), and Devin Williams ($17 million AAV) ahead of Iglesias ($16 million, on a one-year deal) and Suarez ($15 million AAV).

Suarez made the NL All-Star team in both 2024 and ’25 while closing for the Padres, putting up a pair of superficially similar seasons: a 2.77 ERA in 65 innings, with 36 saves (third in the league) in 42 opportunities in the former, and a 2.97 ERA in 69 2/3 innings, with an NL-high 40 saves in 45 opportunities in the latter. Below the surface, his FIP dropped from 3.49 to 2.88, driven by a spike in strikeout rate from 22.9% to 27.9%, and less dramatic drops in his already-low walk rate (from 6.2% to 5.9%) and home run rate (from 0.97 per nine to 0.78). As a result of that improved FIP, his WAR more than doubled, from 0.9 to 1.9. Read the rest of this entry »

The following article is part of Jay Jaffe’s ongoing look at the candidates on the BBWAA 2026 Hall of Fame ballot. Initially written for The Cooperstown Casebook, published in 2017 by Thomas Dunne Books, it was subsequently adapted for SI.com and then FanGraphs. For a detailed introduction to this year’s ballot, and other candidates in the series, use the tool above; an introduction to JAWS can be found here. For a tentative schedule and a chance to fill out a Hall of Fame ballot for our crowdsourcing project, see here. All WAR figures refer to the Baseball-Reference version unless otherwise indicated.

It happened so quickly. Freshly anointed the game’s top prospect by Baseball America in the spring of 1996, the soon-to-be-19-year-old Andruw Jones was sent to play for the Durham Bulls, the Braves’ High-A affiliate. By mid-August, he had blazed through the Carolina League, the Double-A Southern League, and the Triple-A International League, then debuted for the defending world champions. By October 20, with just 31 regular-season games under his belt, he was a household name, having become the youngest player ever to homer in a World Series game, breaking Mickey Mantle’s record — and doing so twice at Yankee Stadium to boot.

Jones was no flash in the pan. The Braves didn’t win the 1996 World Series, and he didn’t win the ’97 National League Rookie of the Year award, but along with Chipper Jones (no relation) and the big three of Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, and John Smoltz, he became a pillar of a franchise that won a remarkable 14 division titles from 1991 to 2005 (all but the 1994 strike season, with ’91–93 in the NL West and ’95–05 in the revamped NL East). From 1998 to 2007, Jones won 10 straight Gold Gloves, more than any center fielder except Willie Mays. Read the rest of this entry »