Just In: Braves traded for a blockbuster

The Braves traded a number of elite prospects a few offseasons ago.

The blockbuster transaction sent All-Star catcher Sean Murphy to Atlanta, but the Braves also traded probably their greatest prospect in the whole organization for relief pitcher Joe Jimenez.

Admittedly, I was not a fan of the deal when it occurred. While Jimenez’s peripherals suggested he had a lot of potential. He had only one season left on his contract and was recovering from a back injury at the time of the deal. More crucially, the Braves surrendered a prospect, Justyn-Henry Malloy, who had the potential to be Atlanta’s future left fielder.

Malloy has yet to make his MLB debut with the Tigers, but that might happen any day soon. He has continued to blast the cover off the ball since switching clubs, hitting 23 home runs with an.892 OPS for AAA Toledo last year. The Tigers must be overjoyed with the trade so far, and the Braves may have had some misgivings at first, but that has changed in the last 10 months or so.

Jimenez was definitely battling with the aftereffects of his injuries from early last year. His velocity was low, producing inconsistent outcomes. But around June, he began to find his groove with the Braves, and over the previous four months, he has thrown to a 2.37 ERA with 49 strikeouts in 38 innings.

Jimenez performed so brilliantly that the Braves gave him a three-year, $26 million contract this winter, which could turn out to be yet another bargain. He’s been by far the team’s most dependable reliever in the first three weeks, with a 1.13 ERA and 1.57 FIP in his first eight outings, providing the Braves another lights-out setup man from the right side to complement the left-handed A.J. Minter.

Trades are rarely mutually beneficial, but this could be one of those rare exceptions. The Tigers must be ecstatic about trading a reliever while rebuilding for a possible starter outfielder, and I don’t think the Braves are worried about Joe Jimenez, who appears to be a valuable addition to their bullpen for several years.