The Braves signed right-hander Zach Thompson to a minor league deal earlier this week, in line with the the transactions tracker on his MLB.com profile web page. Thompson went on to substantiate the signing on his private Instagram account yesterday. Thompson, who celebrated his thirty first birthday earlier this week, didn’t signal with a membership in 2024 after present process surgical procedure final October to restore {a partially} torn flexor tendon.
A fifth-round decide by the White Sox within the 2014 draft, Thompson made his large league debut as a member of the Marlins again in 2021. It was a powerful rookie marketing campaign for the right-hander, as proved to be a pivotal swing man for Miami throughout his lone marketing campaign with the membership. He began 14 of the 26 video games he appeared in and customarily regarded good over 75 innings of labor with a 3.24 ERA and three.69 FIP. He struck out 21% of opponents whereas strolling 8.9%. That first season within the majors was enticing sufficient to the Pirates that Thompson was shipped to Pittsburgh as a part of the commerce that despatched Jacob Stallings to the Marlins in the course of the 2021-22 offseason.
Sadly, Thompson’s 2022 marketing campaign in Pittsburgh didn’t go almost in addition to his rookie 12 months with the Marlins did. The suitable-hander pitched 122 1/3 innings of labor for the Pirates that 12 months throughout 29 appearances (22 begins), however noticed his outcomes take a nosedive as he surrendered a 5.18 ERA with a 4.87 FIP. Whereas Thompson’s stroll fee held largely regular at 8.5%, his strikeout fee dipped to simply 16.6% and his residence run fee almost doubled, taking him from a well-above common swing choice to somebody the Pirates have been comfy designating for project in January of 2023.
Thompson was dealt to the Blue Jays in a minor commerce shortly thereafter however didn’t make the membership’s roster out of camp and was finally DFA’d by Toronto in June. He spent nearly your complete 2023 season as a begin on the Triple-A degree for the Jays, and posted a reasonably lackluster 4.61 ERA in 105 1/3 innings of labor throughout 24 begins whereas hanging out simply 17.4% of his opponents earlier than going underneath the knife in October and electing free company shortly thereafter.
Now that Thompson seems to be recovered from his surgical procedure final 12 months, he’ll look tor re-establish himself as a reputable large league possibility with the Braves. Atlanta has finished effectively serving to different arms who’ve struggled elsewhere discover success with their membership, together with 2024 bullpen items Grant Holmes and Jesse Chavez. With Chavez and lefty A.J. Minter each ticketed without spending a dime company, it’s potential that Thompson may earn a bullpen job out of camp this spring if the Braves prioritize different areas of the roster just like the rotation, the place the membership figures to observe each Max Fried and Charlie Morton depart from this 12 months’s workers.
