Craig Kimbrel DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

The Atlanta Braves have signed relief pitcher Craig Kimbrel to a minor-league deal on Tuesday. The future Hall-of-Famer is back with the Braves after spending the first five seasons of his career with the organization. Since then, Kimbrel has bounced around quite a bit, but currently sits fifth all-time in saves. He's coming off a rough year with the Baltimore Orioles last season. He registered a 5.33 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, with 23 saves in 57 appearances with the O's in 2024. Kimbrel figures to pitch in a high-leverage spot behind Raisel Iglesias in Atlanta. He should see the occasional save chances, but probably won't offer reliable fantasy value while Iglesias is healthy.

The Baltimore Orioles announced on Tuesday that they released veteran right-handed reliever Craig Kimbrel after recently designating him for assignment. Kimbrel opened the 2024 season as the Orioles' closer and saved 23 games for the second straight season, but the nine-time All-Star also struggled to a 5.33 ERA (4.18 FIP) and a 1.36 WHIP with 73 strikeouts and 31 walks in 52 1/3 innings out of the bullpen. Since the All-Star break, he posted an 11.50 ERA (7.44 FIP) with 21 strikeouts and 17 walks in 18 innings over 19 appearances to convince the Orioles to move on. The 15-year MLB veteran is 36 years old and is nearing the end of his career, but he should be able to latch on with another organization for the 2025 campaign if he wants to continue pitching. At this point, though, it's unlikely that Kimbrel will be used as a primary closer if he continues his career.

Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Craig Kimbrel has been designated for assignment, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN. Kimbrel has carried a rough 13.94 ERA, 2.23 WHIP, and a 9:12 BB:K ratio since August 11 and has taken two losses during this period. In addition, he has not recorded a save since July 7 after tallying 23 through most of the first half. While he has still been able to generate strikeouts at an elite 31.5% rate, he has given up hard contact at a very high rate, with a 10.6% barrel rate and a 43.1% hard-hit rate. 29-year-old Seranthony Dominguez has established himself as the go-to option in the ninth inning in Baltimore, as he has tallied nine saves across his past 12 1/3 frames of work. Kimbrel will now be a free agent and could eventually find a new home on a team looking to add a veteran piece to their bullpen.