A 25-year-old outfielder will now have to prove himself in Triple-A.
That’s right, after a few years in the major leagues, the Braves demoted Jarred Kelenic.
"I think it will be good for Jared to go back and play, get at-bats, and Eddie can come here and maybe handle some of the left-handed pinch-hitting," manager Brian Snitker said. "He's done that before, been very successful at it. So it's good to get when you get an experienced guy like that."
In 514 plate appearances over 154 games, Kelenic has slashed .222/.279/.381 — he will now head down to the minor leagues and look to regain form.
With the open roster spot, Atlanta signed outfielder Eddie Rosario to a Major League contract.
“Eddie's a veteran guy, and you know, we're going to give Eli [White] some runs,” Snitker said. “So I think it'd be good for Jared to go back and play, get at-bats. And Eddie can come here and maybe handle some of the left-handed pinch-hitting. He's done that before, been very successful at it. So it's good to get an experienced guy like that.”
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Kelenic’s future in the big leagues, though, is still to be determined.
“He just needs to get playing time,” Snitker said. “Jared has got options, so he can go back down and play. We'll probably run him around all the outfield positions and get him regular at-bats. That'll be good for him.”
The Braves are 13-15, good for third-place in a competitive NL East.