The Atlanta Braves sure learned the value of pitching depth during their miserable fourth-place season.
Though pitching injuries weren’t the sole reason the Braves fell short of expectations, they were probably the biggest one. Every member of the rotation spent time on the injured list, and in total, the Braves used 46 pitchers this season, setting a new franchise record.
Accordingly, the Braves have spent the early part of their offseason grabbing depth arms before presumably going after bigger fish in major league free agency. And they recently added another intriguing minor-leaguer to their tally.
Connor Thomas, the 27-year-old left-hander who made his major league debut in March for the Milwaukee Brewers, signed a minor-league deal with the Braves, according to the transactions log on his official roster page. The deal was officially signed on Nov. 6, but it took several more days to be reflected in the aforementioned log.
After the Brewers were eliminated from the playoffs in mid-October, Thomas was waived and after he went unclaimed, he elected free agency. It only took him two weeks to find a new organization.
Thomas had surgery in July to repair his left UCL, so his best-case scenario is likely to return around midseason. That timing could work out well for the Braves if the injury bug strikes again, but they won’t rush their new acquisition coming off surgery. He’s not on the 40-man roster, so they don’t have to worry about clearing space for him or using one of his options right away to begin the season.
Thomas’ first two major league outings were a disaster, as he allowed 12 hits and 12 earned runs in just 5 1/3 innings. But the Brewers clearly had high hopes for him, considering they selected him in the Rule 5 Draft last December, and in the minors last year, he posted a 2.89 ERA in Triple-A for the St. Louis Cardinals organization.
A former standout at Georgia Tech, Thomas will now return to familiar surroundings as he rehabs and hopes to get an opportunity to support the Braves’ turnaround.
