Atlanta Braves Sign Former All-Star Pitcher Alexi Ogando

That Atlanta Braves announced on twitter that they have signed right-handed pitcher Alexi Ogando to a minor league deal.  The six-year veteran pitcher will get an invite to the Braves 2016 Spring Training workouts.

The Braves continue to stockpile pitchers that have been around the MLB for a while.  This is the same approach they’ve taken the last few years.

Ogando is a 32-year-old vet that originally signed with the Oakland A’s as an outfielder in 2002.  After struggling at the plate and having issues with the law (human trafficking), he was picked by the Texas Rangers in the 2005 Rule 5 draft.

He made his debut with the Rangers on June 15, 2010 at the age of 26-years-old.  In 2011, he started the year 7-0 with a 2.20 ERA and was selected to the All-Star game.  His stats fell off towards the end of the season and finished the year with a 13-8 record and a .351 ERA.

The positive with Ogando is that he is very versatile.  He’s been a starter and a reliever in the MLB…oh yeah, he can also hit.  He could be the long-form relief pitcher that the Braves were looking for in their bullpen.

Other news…relief pitcher Brandon Cunniff has cleared waivers and will report to Triple-A Gwinnett to start 2016.  This is actually great news as most of us were expecting a team to scoop him up.

Here is Ogando’s career stats.  Last year he played with the Boston Redsox.