The Braves introduced that they’ve signed free agent outfielder Jurickson Profar to a three-year, $42MM deal. The MVP Sports activities Group shopper will make $12MM this yr after which $15MM in every of the following two seasons. Atlanta designated right-hander Connor Gillispie in a corresponding transfer.
Profar, 32, has been wildly inconsistent in his profession however is coming off his finest season. As soon as a high prospect with the Rangers, he made it to the majors as a 19-year-old however struggled in his first few seasons. He ultimately confirmed some promise however frustratingly alternated between good and dangerous seasons.
He had a kind of down seasons in 2023, which is why the Padres have been capable of signal him final offseason for simply $1MM, barely above the league minimal. The Padres most likely couldn’t have dreamed concerning the return on funding they might ultimately get from that.
Profar acquired into 158 video games and stepped to the plate 668 occasions. His 15.1% strikeout fee and 11.4% stroll fee have been each robust numbers however pretty regular for him. He managed to do extra harm when he linked, with out sacrificing any of his trademark plate self-discipline. His 24 house runs have been a profession excessive. The three numbers in his .280/.380/.459 slash line have been all private bests as nicely, other than a .471 slugging proportion in his nine-game debut again in 2012. His 139 wRC+ simply eclipsed his earlier private excessive of 113 and was additionally put him within the high 15 amongst certified hitters final yr. The switch-hitter did that harm from either side of the plate, with a 137 wRC+ as a lefty and 147 as a righty.
Given his capricious manufacturing through the years, it could be honest to be a bit skeptical that he may preserve that form of efficiency going. Nonetheless, there are some encouraging numbers below the hood. Profar’s 44.8% exhausting hit hate fee, 91.1 mile-per-hour common exit velocity and seven.2% barrel fee have been all considerably higher than something he had finished earlier than. His .302 batting common on balls in play was a profession excessive however only a bit above the .291 league common.
Although Profar has performed everywhere in the diamond in his profession, he’s largely a left fielder now. He’s barely performed the opposite outfield slots in his profession. He hasn’t actually been an infield common since 2019. He logged simply 18 innings at first base final yr, the one place he performed other than left discipline in the course of the marketing campaign.
Profar’s work in left hasn’t been particularly nicely regarded. Final yr, he was given a grade of -8 from Defensive Runs Saved and -6 from Outs Above Common. Regardless of that, because of his large offense and ten stolen bases, FanGraphs thought-about him to be price 4.3 wins above substitute on the season.
That manufacturing was large for the Padres, provided that that they had notable monetary restraints, which is why they took that $1MM flier on Profar. They certainly would have welcomed him again, given the longstanding ties between Profar and president of baseball operations A.J. Preller. Nonetheless, their monetary state of affairs is maybe much more grim now than it was a yr in the past. They reportedly have to make important cuts to the price range whereas additionally searching for options on the roster. Along with Profar’s absence in left, they’ve query marks behind the plate, within the rotation and at shortstop.
Profar has additionally expressed a keenness for San Diego and doubtless needed to return, however he additionally most likely acknowledged that that is most likely his finest likelihood at a free agent payday. He had beforehand signed a three-year, $21MM cope with the Padres going into 2021 however opted out of that pact after two years. He settled for modest one-year offers prior to now two offseasons however has now secured himself a powerful three-year deal.
For Atlanta, outfield has stood out as a transparent space for enchancment this winter. Ronald Acuña Jr. suffered a torn ACL in his left knee final yr and missed the second half of the season. He’ll be again in proper discipline sooner or later in 2025 however most likely not on Opening Day. Gamers like Ramón Laureano and Jorge Soler have been used to cowl for Acuña’s absence however jettisoned after the season. Soler was flipped to the Angels whereas Laureano was non-tendered. The membership’s acquisition of Jarred Kelenic final offseason additionally didn’t go particularly nicely. He struck out 29.6% of the time and hit .231/.286/.393 for a wRC+ of 86.
Time will inform how the membership plans to play it as soon as everyone seems to be wholesome. Michael Harris II will probably be in middle however Atlanta has its designated hitter spot dedicated to Marcell Ozuna. Profar and Kelenic can flank Harris for now however Acuña will ultimately be again. The lefty-swinging Kelenic has higher numbers towards righties however the membership presumably isn’t giving the Profar $42MM to be a short-side platoon man.
Maybe Kelenic will ultimately get pushed right into a fourth outfielder position as soon as Acuña is again, although he might have a little bit of time to show himself worthy of extra. Ozuna is an impending free agent, so maybe the foursome of Harris, Acuña, Profar and Kelenic can higher co-exist in 2026 and past. Kelenic does have an possibility remaining, so a while within the minors is feasible as nicely.
With Profar now within the fold, RosterResource calculates Atlanta’s payroll at $212MM and their aggressive stability tax quantity at $230MM. The latter is $11MM shy of this yr’s base threshold. They opened final yr at $223MM, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts.
President of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos has beforehand stated that he expects payroll to rise and that the membership is keen to pay the tax once more this yr. Nonetheless, most of his strikes have been targeted on including monetary respiration room. As talked about, Soler was flipped in a wage dump and Laureano was reduce. Travis d’Arnaud had his membership possibility turned down. The membership restructured the contracts of Aaron Bummer and Reynaldo López to kick some cash down the street.
If there may be nonetheless some powder dry, then maybe Atlanta will pivot to including some pitching within the coming weeks. They have been linked to Nathan Eovaldi earlier within the winter and reportedly had an settlement in place with Jeff Hoffman, with Hoffman to be stretched out as a starter, earlier than they grew involved by one thing they noticed in his shoulder throughout his bodily. They have been additionally linked to reliever Tanner Scott earlier within the winter. All these guys have signed elsewhere however the curiosity signifies Atlanta is trying so as to add to the employees.
For golf equipment nonetheless searching for outfield assist, the market is basically out of on a regular basis gamers now. Juan Soto, Teoscar Hernández, Anthony Santander, Tyler O’Neill and Profar at the moment are all off the board. The perfect remaining outfielders are position gamers like Harrison Bader, Randal Grichuk and Alex Verdugo. Golf equipment just like the Royals, Astros and Blue Jays have been linked to Profar this winter, although the Jays signed Santander earlier this week.
Gillispie, 27, simply signed a non-guaranteed contract with Atlanta in November. He made his main league debut with Cleveland final yr however solely logged eight innings and was non-tendered at season’s finish. In his minor league profession, he has thrown 426 1/3 innings with a 4.01 earned run common, 24.3% strikeout fee and 9.4% stroll fee. Atlanta could have one week of DFA limbo to determine what’s subsequent for him. For the reason that waiver course of takes 48 hours, any potential commerce talks must come collectively within the subsequent 5 days.
Robert Murray of FanSided was first with the settlement between Atlanta and Profar.
