"The Atlanta Braves did not have a great time on the hill (or otherwise) in 2025, finishing 23rd in fWAR. A lot of that was injuries, a lot of that was an inflated HR/FB rate that took the staff, such as it was, from the league's 12th-best xFIP- to a 22nd-best FIP-, and some of it was just plugging and playing various guys once it was clear the season was a wash."
"Amid all that, a temporary bright spot for Atlanta's bullpen was the acquisition of Tyler Kinley. If it were not for him, and the turnaround of Raisel Iglesias, the Braves could have ended the season as having one of their worst bullpen outputs in recent memory. While the Braves indicated that they acquired Kinley midseason with an eye for 2026, they nonetheless turned down his option, apparently not trusting his good results down the stretch."
"Prior to the Braves acquiring Kinley, he was struggling mightily for the Rockies in terms of run prevention: a 118 ERA-, 96 FIP-, and 113 xFIP-. Sure, he didn't deserve his ERA, but his actual pitching wasn't that great either. In any case, the Braves took a chance on him by sending Double-A pitcher Austin Smith to Rockies a day before the Trade Deadline."
The Atlanta Braves finished 23rd in fWAR in 2025 due to injuries, an inflated HR/FB rate, and frequent roster churn that worsened overall pitching results. The team acquired reliever Tyler Kinley from the Rockies at the Trade Deadline, trading Double-A pitcher Austin Smith in a low-risk move. Kinley arrived with poor run-prevention numbers for Colorado but provided a late-season boost for Atlanta’s bullpen alongside Raisel Iglesias. Kinley carried a $5.5 million 2026 option with a $0.75 million buyout, effectively serving as an extended audition down the stretch. His low 59.4% LOB% suggested likely positive regression to the mean.
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