The Atlanta Braves are clearly searching for answers right now. After spoiling a Chris Sale start with poor defense along with a truly terrible umpiring performance, the Braves have now lost four straight and are just barely hanging on to a playoff spot by the skin of their teeth.
When the Braves brought back Eddie Rosario after he was let go by the Nationals, the hope was that he would be able to recapture the magic that he brought to the team when they first acquired him in 2021. Unfortunately, the Rosario that joined the team this year more closely resembled the one that could barely hit at all in 2022 as he has slashed .154/.181/.282 in 24 games with Atlanta this season.
With the Braves trading for Jorge Soler and Michael Harris II returning soon, it had become abundantly clear that Rosario's path to playing time this season was looking pretty rough. Well, the Braves made a series of roster moves on Thursday and part of that was the inevitable decision to designate Rosario for assignment.
The #Braves today selected RHP Parker Dunshee to the major league roster and recalled OF Eli White to Atlanta. The club optioned LHP Dylan Dodd to Triple-A Gwinnett following last night’s game and designated OF Eddie Rosario for assignment.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 8, 2024
Braves News: Atlanta DFAs Eddie Rosario amidst series of moves to bolster their bullpen
After Dylan Dodd got shelled by the Brewers out of the bullpen, the Braves were always likely to bring up a fresh arm or two to cover innings if need be. Curiously, Atlanta decided to bring up Parker Dunshee who has had a really good season in the minors with a 2.30 ERA and 66 strikeouts in just 47 innings of work. To bring Dunshee up, Atlanta needed a spot on the 40-man and Rosario was a pretty easy choice to cut.
The rest of the roster moves were pretty self-explanatory. Eli White got called up to give the Braves some outfield depth on the bench with Rosario getting sent off the roster and Dodd got sent back to the minors to continue getting work in away from the bright lights of the majors.
It is a sad end to Rosario's tenure with the Braves, but he may not be gone forever. Given how bad he has been this year, there is a good chance that he clears waivers and makes it back to the minor leagues. Assuming he plays well, there is reasonable chance we could see Rosario in a Braves uniform again even if the odds that he will ever look like the guy that carried Atlanta to the World Series are exceedingly low.