The Braves’s 2026 season is well underway.
Keep it here for all the team’s personnel and injury news.
The Braves made a transaction Friday by acquiring right-handed pitcher Victor Mederos from the Angels. In exchange, the Braves sent the Angels international bonus pool money.
A native of Cuba, the 24-year-old Mederos pitched for Oklahoma State and went to high school in California. He was drafted by the Angels in the sixth round of the 2022 MLB draft.
Mederos has pitched in 12 MLB games since 2023 and has allowed 24 earned runs in 25 1/3 innings. Last season the 6-foot-2, right-hander gave up 14 runs in 17 innings and walked 12 hitters.
The Angels had designated Mederos for assignment Sunday.
The Braves have optioned Mederos to Triple-A Gwinnett and transferred pitcher AJ Smith-Shawver to the 60-day injured list.
The Braves on Tuesday claimed pitcher Osvaldo Bido off waivers from the Yankees.
Bido, 30, made seven appearances for the Yankees in the Grapefruit League and had a 1.29 ERA with seven strikeouts and three walks over seven innings. The right-hander from the Dominican Republic originally signed with the Pirates as a free agent in 2017.
In three MLB seasons, Bido has pitched in 58 games and made 28 starts with the Pirates (2023) and A's (2024-25). Bido has a 5.07 career ERA and was actually claimed by the Braves off waivers from the A's in December before the Rays claimed him off waivers from the Braves two weeks later.
In a corresponding move Tuesday, the Braves placed pitcher Joey Wentz on the 60-day injured list. Wentz tore the ACL in his right knee in early March and is expected to miss the 2026 season.
Manager Walt Weiss confirmed the Braves rotation for their opening series against the Royals starting Friday at Truist Park.
Chris Sale, previously announced as the opening day starter, will take the mound Friday and be opposed by Cole Ragans for the Royals. On Saturday, Reynaldo Lopez will pitch followed by Spencer Strider on Sunday.
Sale pitched six strong innings against the Red Sox on Saturday in Fort Myers. Lopez was on the mound Sunday in Fort Myers against the Twins, and Strider is scheduled to make his final Grapefruit League start Monday in Bradenton against the Pirates.
The Braves announced Saturday that Kyle Farmer and Dominic Smith have been signed to one-year split contracts for the 2026 season. Smith and Farmer, veteran infielders, will make a certainly salary when playing with the Braves and a separate salary when — and if — they remain with the club at a minor-league level.
Farmer, a Marist graduate who went on to star at Georgia, is 14-for-35 this spring (.400) with a homer and five RBIs. He has an .OPS of .931 over 12 Grapefruit League games.
Farmer can play multiple infield positions.
The Braves signed Smith, a first baseman, to a minor-league deal in February. He is 8-for-33 in 12 spring training games.
Smith began his career by playing six seasons with the Mets before joining the Nationals, Red Sox, Reds and Giants, respectively. Farmer has been with the Dodgers, Reds, Twins and Rockies, respectively.
The Braves have reportedly signed Rowdy Tellez to a minor-league contract, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
Tellez, 31, spent the 2025 season with the Mariners, before being released in June, and the Rangers. Tellez is a career .234 hitter over eight MLB seasons with an OPS of .736.
Notably, Tellez has hit 107 of his 122 career home runs against right-handed hitters.
In 2022 with the Brewers, Tellez hit 35 home runs and drove in 89 runs.
The Braves made a handful of roster moves Friday to trim its number of active players with the major-league squad to 36.
Reliever Dylan Dodd was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett. Dodd pitched in six games during Grapefruit League action, and allowed three earned runs and two homers over nine innings. In 2025 with the Braves, Dodd totaled 35 innings in 28 games and had a 3.60 ERA.
The Braves also reassigned outfielders José Azócar and Ben Gamel; catcher Sandy León; infielder Luke Williams; and pitcher JR Ritchie to minor league camp.
Gamel had four homers and seven RBIs during Grapefruit League play but had cooled off recently to the tune of a .206 batting average. Ritchie, one of the team's top pitching prospects, threw 12 innings in four games, allowed three earned runs and fanned 14 hitters.
The Braves on Thursday outrighted relief pitcher Ian Hamilton to Triple-A Gwinnett.
Hamilton pitched just 1⅔ innings in Grapefruit League action, throwing 46 pitches. He gave up three hits and an earned run, walked two hitters and recorded a strikeout.
The 30-year-old Hamilton pitched in 110 games over the past three seasons for the Yankees.
The Braves now have 41 active players in camp ahead of opening day on March 27.
The Braves on Wednesday reassigned Jair Camargo to minor league camp.
Camargo, 26, played five MLB games with the Twins in 2024. He played in 11 Grapefruit League games with the Braves and went 3-for-16 with two homers and a double while driving in three.
The Braves now have 42 active players in MLB camp. Drake Baldwin and Jonah Heim are the remaining catchers.
The Braves beat the Rays 11-2 on Monday.
Chris Sale goes six strong innings and Drake Baldwin drives in four runs.
The Braves (16-5-2) travel to Fort Myers to face the Red Sox at 1 p.m. Tuesday.
Drake Baldwin launches a three-run home run in the eighth to put the Braves up 11-2.
Baldwin's 370-footer sails out to right, his second homer of the spring.
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