Going into the offseason, one of the Atlanta Braves biggest holes was their bullpen. With the club declining options on Pierce Johnnson and Tyler Kinley and Raisel Iglesias entering free agency, the club's internal high leverage options were sparse to put it kindly.
On Wednesday, they made their first move by re-signing Iglesias which was a solid first step. While Iglesias's $16 million salary for 2026 might have fans concerned that this could be the only spending the front office does to address the remaining bullpen gaps, the club still has plenty to spend.
Fears that Braves already exhausted their bullpen spending on Raisel Iglesias seem overblown (for now)
While $16 million might seem like a hefty salary for the Braves to dedicate to a reliever, it actually doesn't change how much the club is allotting to the closer role in 2026, as Iglesias also made $16 million in his previous three full seasons with Atlanta.
As things stand, the Braves are now currently projected to have a $212.5 million payroll in 2026 with Iglesias's new deal and the acquisition of Mauricio Dubón. This is still $8 million lower than the club's 2025 payroll, but more importantly, $26 million lower than the team's 2024 payroll.
If the Braves do indeed have at least $26 million or more to spend, which should be the expectation after Braves chairman Terry McGuirk stated he expected the team to have a top-five payroll, there should be flexibility for shortstop, starting pitching, and relievers.
The Braves could add a reliever like a Pierce Johnson or Taylor Rogers in the $5-$8 million range, which would leave at least $15 million between starting pitching and shortstop. There are also several relievers the club can scoop up in the form of Sean Newcomb or Scott Barlow who could cover the middle innings while not costing more than a few million.
Of course, the Braves could decide that they're satisfied with Dubón at shortstop. Instead of using $10-$15 million on a shortstop, they could instead use that money and find an additional late-inning reliever. Even if starting pitching and a shortstop are now the Braves priorities, there will still be room for additional quality relievers that are not picked off the scrap heap like they were last season.