The Atlanta Braves announced they have sent catcher Max Stassi, acquired last night from the Los Angeles Angels, and cash to the Chicago White Sox for a player to be named later.
The #Braves today acquired a player to be named later from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for C Max Stassi and cash considerations.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) December 9, 2023
Stassi, 32, didn't play in 2023 as his family was dealing with a personal medical issue relating to the premature birth of his child. He was owed $7M in the final year of a three year, $17.5M deal he signed with the Los Angeles Angels after the 2020 season.
Atlanta also sent an unspecified amount of cash to the White Sox in the deal. Once that amount is known, we'll have a clearer picture of how much salary Atlanta took on to acquire Jarred Kelenic from the Seattle Mariners on Sunday night.
Kelenic, only 24 years old and a former top prospect of the Mariners, still has six years of contractual control, becoming arbitration eligible in 2025 and a free agent in 2029. But Atlanta had to take on the salaries of both LHP Marco Gonzales and 1B Evan White in the deal.
Anthopoulos has been busy since Sunday night, moving both Gonzales (Pirates) and White (Angels) in subsequent trades. $4.5M was received from the Mariners in the Sunday deal and Atlanta sent an unspecified amount to both Pittsburgh and Chicago in these deals, and so final costs for Kelenic are not known at this time.
But Atlanta, in essence, took those two salary obligations and turned them into infielder David Fletcher as a backup option on the dirt, should they choose to keep him on the roster.
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