Braves trade for former Yankees pitcher and thin outfield pool and full swoop

The Atlanta Braves added some potential bullpen help in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays. Right-handed pitcher Ben Heller is headed to Gwinnett. 

In the same move which allowed the Braves to acquire Ben Heller, they designated Nick Solak for assignment. Solak had been in the outfield mix, to some extent, but failed to make much of an impact on the big-league squad.

Heller fills a position of need should he succeed in the minors. He hasn’t pitched in the major leagues since 2020, but in various stints with the Yankees, has faired well. Heller has a career 2.59 ERA in 31 appearances, all out of the bullpen.

Heller had Tommy John surgery in 2018, and suffered another major injury in 2021. Heller explained how he overcame his injury woes that year.

Heller is a tremendous story, and it would be phenomenal if the Braves could turn him back into the pitcher he once was. But it should be noted he hasn’t been to the big leagues since, so this is more of a flyer for Alex Anthopoulos.

Braves trade for Ben Heller, DFA Nick Solak

Heller has tried to come back before, signing with the Diamondbacks, Twins and then Rays, all three unsuccessful stints. Atlanta believes they have the player development staff necessary to revive his career.

MLBTR casts some doubt on Heller’s ability to do so, and even went as far as to call his advanced statistics ‘lucky’.

"“The right-hander has 31 games of major league experience, all of which came with the Yankees. Those were scattered across the 2016 to 2020 time frame, with Heller never topping 10 appearances in any individual campaign. He has a career 2.59 ERA, though with a .253 batting average on balls in play and 98.4% strand rate, both of which are unsustainably lucky.”"

Still, bullpen help is always needed around baseball. If Atlanta didn’t trade for Heller, someone else would. It’s a decent move for a team which needs depth at the position.