The Atlanta Braves made a deal on Thursday sending veteran pitcher, Rodrigo Lopez, to the Chicago Cubs for left-handed pitching prospect, Ryan Buchter. Lopez was signed as a minor league free agent before the season with an invitation to Spring Training. He was beat out by rookie Brandon Beachy for the 5th starter in the Braves’ rotation. Mike Minor and Julio Teheran, two of the Braves’ top pitching prospects, had Lopez blocked from the Atlanta rotation. They had both been called upon to pitch already this year.
Lopez was enjoying a solid year in AAA in Gwinnett. He had posted a 6-1 record with a 2.59 ERA over 9 starts. The Braves had until June 15 to trade Lopez or add him to the active roster. Otherwise, he could have been signed by any team.
The Braves opted to add depth to their farm system by getting Buchter. The Braves farm system needed more left-handed pitchers, which Buchter will help. He has posted a 3.38 ERA and .197 opponents’ average in 16 relief appearances in Class A and AA, with 30 strikeouts in 21-1-3 innings. However, he started the year in AA where he had a 6.55 ERA and a 2.18 WHIP in 11 innings, before being demoted to the Class A where he had a 0.00 ERA and a 0.48 WHIP in 10.1 innings.
Moving on.
Original Story:
http://www.tomahawktalk.com/2011/05/b...
