Braves Send MLB’s ‘Least Valuable Player’ to Triple-A

De La Cruz broke out during the 2021 season with the Miami Marlins and was a consistent presence in Miami’s offense until he was traded at the deadline in 2024. However, he has been one of baseball’s worst players since leaving the Marlins.

Miami sent him to the Pittsburgh Pirates in the trade, and he hit .200 in 44 games with Pittsburgh. De La Cruz also struggled defensively with the Pirates, leading them not to re-sign him last offseason.

The Braves took a flier on De La Cruz, as they hoped he and Jarred Kelenic could split time in right field until Ronald Acuña Jr. returned from knee surgery. However, the move has not worked out.

Dating back to his Marlins departure, De La Cruz has been the least valuable player in baseball by fWAR. In his time with the Pirates and Braves, De La Cruz has a -1.6 fWAR and is hitting .198. His power has also disappeared, as he’s hit three home runs in the span, all with Pittsburgh.

To make matters worse, the Braves had to play De La Cruz more than they initially expected. Jurickson Profar’s untimely 80-game suspension forced Atlanta to play Kelenic and De La Cruz together. While Kelenic has also struggled, the Braves are opting to keep him with the team over De La Cruz.

While Verdugo is not guaranteed to outperform De La Cruz, the Braves needed to make the change. Atlanta signed Verdugo with the hopes he would be a major-league contributor, and with De La Cruz struggling, this was the perfect opportunity to bring him up.

With Acuña’s return on the horizon, it’s unlikely De La Cruz makes a return to Atlanta in the near future. Once a promising offensive player, De La Cruz now faces a potentially long wait for his next MLB opportunity.