Should the Braves move on from Tyler Kinley?

Among the issues in Atlanta, the Braves bullpen is near the bottom of the list. That said, the injury to Robert Suarez — whose return still doesn’t appear imminent — has exposed some chinks in the armor once you get past the first 4-5 guys.

Braves’ Proven Reliable Relievers

1. Raisel Iglesias
2. Dylan Lee
3. Didier Fuentes
4. Dylan Dodd
5. Robert Suarez (when healthy)

Danny Young has shown some chops in eight appearances since returning from injury, but the sample size remains too small to draw any definitive conclusions. Outside of those six, pretty much everyone else in the bullpen is a candidate to be upgraded as the trade deadline approaches, including Tyler Kinley, who was the Braves’ lone addition at last year’s deadline.

Kinley was acquired for basically nothing and followed a similar path as Pierce Johnson — a struggling Rockies reliever who just needed to get away from Coors Field. In 27 appearances for the Braves last year, he recorded a 0.72 ERA, which led Alex Anthopoulos to retain him over the offseason.

Early on, that looked like the right call, but he’s essentially become unplayable in any meaningful situation, and yesterday afternoon was the perfect example. With some of the Braves’ top guys unavailable, Walt Weiss turned to Kinley in the eighth inning with the club holding a three-run lead. He couldn’t finish the frame, giving up a terrible two-run homer on an 0-2 pitch that hung right over the heart of the plate.

Kinley has now had three separate appearances this month in which he’s given up multiple runs — all thanks to the long ball. His ERA in July sits at a gaudy 12.71, and even going back to late April (29 appearances), his ERA is 6.20, with a FIP that suggests it has nothing to do with poor luck.

Whether it’s a lingering arm problem — he spent a couple of weeks on the IL earlier this season with elbow inflammation — or something else, Kinley has become an arm that can’t be trusted in just about any situation. He’s getting hit hard and often, which has to have the Braves thinking about upgrading at the deadline, especially with a rotation that’s proven it can’t go deep into games unless Chris Sale is on the mound.

Overall, Kinley wasn’t a bad acquisition. You’ll take a 2.97 ERA over 65 appearances for a reliever who cost nothing to bring in every time. But it appears his time has run its course. A DFA could be in his very near future.