Nearly every offseason since his arrival in Atlanta, general manager Alex Anthopoulos has made it a priority to construct a trustworthy bullpen. Unfortunately, that effort was strangely lacking last offseason despite Joe Jimenez's injury, and the 2025 Atlanta Braves' bullpen has taken a step back as a result.
Most of the current big league bullpen is under contract next season or beyond, but that doesn't necessarily mean the same group will (or at least should) be back in 2026. Plenty of questions sit with the current group of bullpen arms Atlanta and if we know Alex Anthopoulos like we think we do, he will surely have a surprising move or two up his sleeve. Because we expect some fresh faces to land in Atlanta's bullpen in 2026, let's take a quick look at a few names we hope the Braves leave in 2025.
Here are three relievers the Braves should cut bait with after this season
Aaron Bummer
The soon-to-be 32 year-old reliever has always been a controversial figure since his arrival in Atlanta. Bummer's ability to limit hard contact led to many singing his praises. On the other hand, Bummer's troubles with inherited runners and BABIP luck has led to others wanting him off the team.
In reality, Bummer's performance is more of a solid middle inning reliever. His 3.81 ERA and 3.50 FIP would be even better if you threw out the two appearances he had when the Braves used him as a starter and left him in an inning too long. He's actually the type of guy you want to keep around if you can...that is until you take a look at a couple other key bits of information.
Sadly, Bummer was just placed on the injured list with what the team labeled shoulder inflammation. Anytime you hear "shoulder injury" with pitchers it's reason to be concerned. Additionally, Bummer is set to make $9.5 million in 2026 thanks to the reworked contract he got last November. Good relievers cost money, but Bummer at over $9 million isn't exactly what you want to be spending on a middle-innings reliever when there are other holes to fill on the roster.
Daysbel Hernandez
For each of the past two seasons, Daysbel Hernandez has done a solid enough job at every relievers main job: run prevention. Sadly, the process has never been good enough to keep Hernandez at the Major League level very long. Going through life as a reliever while simultaneously carrying an absurdly high 18.4% walk rate just doesn't lend itself to being effective out of the bullpen.
Hernandez isn't even arb eligible yet so there is an argument to keep him as depth. However, for a pitcher who has never found the strike zone frequently and is nearing the age of 30, suddenly figuring it out seems like a long shot at this point. If the Braves truly feel Hernandez will never throw enough strikes to stick at the big league level, clearing a 40-man roster spot isn't the worst idea.
Raisel Iglesias
Unlike those previously mentioned, Raisel Iglesias is a free agent to be this upcoming winter. So theoretically, Atlanta doesn't have to do anything to move on from Iglesias. However, his recent stretch of pitching has seemingly opened the door for a possible reunion. His veteran presence in the bullpen does help, but will he be worth keeping around if his bounce back second half lands him a two-year deal this upcoming offseason?
The answer for Anthopoulos should be no. Iglesias has been rock solid for Atlanta since he arrived, but the first half of 2025 showcased some real warning signs to how he will age. Both Iglesias' changeup and slider have taken a massive step back in 2025. His velocity has dipped about a full mph on average this year, and he will be 36 years-old next season with plenty of mileage on his right arm.
Iggy on a one year deal at a fair price is fine. However, given how intense offseason bullpen contacts get, don't be surprised if he commands more than the Braves should be comfortable shelling out. Truthfully, Anthopoulos should look to reconstruct this bullpen with a little more variety and hopefully some hard-throwing arms that the team can deploy in the late-innings of closely contested games.