Braves playoff hero on injured reserve

The Atlanta Braves have done a lot of work to strengthen their bullpen this offseason.

The focus is on the high-profile moves, with Atlanta shelling out a total of $40.25 million to re-sign the duo Joe Jimenez And Pierce Johnson to multi-year agreements this offseason and the trade acquisition of left-hander Aaron Bummer from the Chicago White Sox in a five-player package. (Johnson is currently on injured reserve with elbow inflammation.)

But another, less heralded trade acquisition will come into play. The Braves announced that reliever Tyler Matzek, the hero of the 2021 NLCS, has been placed on injured reserve with elbow inflammation. Replacing him on the active roster and in the bullpen is Ray Kerrwho is recalled from AAA Gwinnett.

Kerr, 29, was acquired from the San Diego Padres as a key piece as part of an offseason deal that saw the Braves take DH Matt Carpenter’s salary, which they then released. In nine games this season for Gwinnett, including one start, Kerr is 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA. He struck out twenty-two and walked five in fourteen innings, allowing five home runs and making three saves.

For Matzek, elbow pain could explain his struggles returning from Tommy John surgery in late 2022. After averaging a fastball velocity of 96.0 mph in 2021, 2022 and so far this season, Matzek’s velocity hovered around 94 mph and his stats saw a corresponding decline: a 9.90 ERA in ten appearances, with eleven earned runs in just ten innings, with three walks and ten strikeouts. He’s thrown two wild pitches and allowed three home runs so far, good for an ERA+ of just 43 (down from 169 in 2021).

All three of Matzek’s home runs allowed came from fastballs and opponents are hitting .414 with a .793 ball in the field (compared to his slider, which allows a .250 batting average against and a .313 strikeout) . Hitters only swung and missed 12.9% of the time against the fastball in 2024, while his 2021 amazon was 22.6%. Looking at the expected stats doesn’t give much hope that it’s just bad luck on Matzek’s part, as his expected batting average allowed on the fastball is still .379 and expected slugging is .786.

Atlanta backdated the transaction to May 5, making him eligible to return as early as May 20.