"They had Jarred Kelenic as a fourth outfielder, and added Bryan De La Cruz as yet another bench option to allow for a mini-platoon with Kelenic in case an outfielder got hurt. Well, Profar got suspended before Acuña returned, and both Kelenic and De La Cruz were absolutely horrid early on, which meant... the Braves went ahead and plugged in a different placeholder fourth outfielder with MLB experience, in the form of Alex Verdugo."
"In a vacuum, the $1.5 million the Braves handed Verdugo late in Spring Training was not a lot of money for some outfield depth from a player who had had decent results, relatively speaking. Before his 2024 with the Yankees, Verdugo posted a wRC+ that was league average or better in each season from 2019 to 2023, and the only one of those seasons that involved him massively outhitting a poor xwOBA was the shortened 2020 season."
"When Verdugo was signed, his role was to be outfield depth. The Braves didn't yet know that they'd essentially be forced into starting him. At the price that was paid, it was a low-risk move for a fourth outfielder that would get some starts if a corner outfielder was injured. Verdugo managed 0.6 fWAR in 2024, and was projected for about 1 fWAR in 2025, so that's exactly the kind of guy you want on your bench... in theory."
The Atlanta Braves entered the season with Michael Harris II, Ronald Acuña Jr., and Jurickson Profar as starters, Jarred Kelenic as the fourth outfielder, and Bryan De La Cruz as an extra bench option. Profar's suspension and the early, poor performances of Kelenic and De La Cruz forced the Braves to use Alex Verdugo as a placeholder fourth outfielder. The Braves signed Verdugo on March 20 for $1.5 million as low-risk outfield depth. Verdugo missed most of Spring Training, began the season in the minors to regain reps, and had previously posted league-average or better wRC+ from 2019–2023. Verdugo recorded 0.6 fWAR in 2024 and was projected near 1.0 fWAR in 2025.
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