I don’t need to overstate the worth of uncooked monetary energy in baseball. The Mets spent greater than $320 million on participant salaries, not counting luxurious tax penalties, and so they completed 4 video games over .500. Cash can’t purchase happiness, or perhaps a spot within the playoffs.
It could possibly, nonetheless, purchase you a more in-depth and a significant improve to your bench. So the Braves demonstrated Wednesday, once they re-signed nearer Raisel Iglesias for one 12 months at $16 million, and swapped utility infielders with the Astros, sending Nick Allen west in a 1-for-1 commerce for Mauricio Dubón.
The Braves went into final season as one of many favorites to win the NL pennant solely to tumble to fourth place behind the Marlins (the Marlins!) after befalling a collection of farces and calamities that recall A Critical Man. Jurickson Profar received popped for PEDs, Spencer Strider and Ozzie Albies misplaced their juice, half the roster received harm, it was an enormous mess.
You knew issues have been going badly when Iglesias couldn’t cease blowing saves. This was among the finest closers of the 2020s, a metronomic aid ace in a world the place that’s nearly a contradiction in phrases. If you happen to extrapolate out 2020’s stats over a 162-game tempo, Iglesias was coming off 5 straight seasons of between 58 and 67 appearances, with an ERA between 1.95 and a couple of.75, and a FIP between 2.30 and three.38. To get that pitcher for simply $16 million could be a coup.
However because the Braves began 0-7, Iglesias additionally got here out of the gate sluggish. He blew his first save alternative, and saved wobbling from there. The nadir got here on June 5 — this was the sport the place the Diamondbacks got here again from being down 10-4 within the ninth inning to win. Iglesias took the lion’s share of that beating; he confronted seven batters and surrendered three runs, plus one other runner he inherited from Scott Blewett.
It was Iglesias’ fourth blown save in his first 12 alternatives of the season. At that time, he was 3-5 with a 6.75 ERA, with two of these wins coming in video games the place he’d already blown the save.
And the underlying numbers weren’t nice both; Iglesias had misplaced a tick of fastball velocity from 2024, and thru the tip of Might, his slider had generated simply 9 whiffs towards seven hits, 5 of them house runs.
That’s not what you need. And should you checked out on the Braves’ season…effectively, about the identical time Alex Anthopoulos did, on the threat of being too blunt, you would possibly marvel why on the planet the Braves have been fascinated with holding their 35-year-old nearer at any price, not to mention $16 million.
After he hit all-time low, Iglesias bounced again as if his bottom was made from foolish putty. From June 6 on, he made 45 appearances totaling 43 1/3 innings. He struck out 48 and allowed solely 31 baserunners, one house run, and 6 earned runs of any kind. In back-of-the-baseball card math, Iglesias went 21-for-22 in save conditions with a 1.25 ERA and a 1.98 FIP.
I’m undecided it’s attainable to fully fluke into numbers that good, however this turnaround got here with some underlying adjustments. He received that misplaced fastball velocity again and began throwing his fastballs extra, which is sweet; even with the terrible begin to the season, opponents slugged underneath .200 towards each Iglesias’ four-seamer and sinker. By September, he was barely throwing the slider in any respect.
Going ahead, Iglesias will in all probability want to have the ability to throw a breaking ball that doesn’t include a better-than-even likelihood that he’ll must again up third base, however for now, I’m ready to declare him fastened and grant him absolution. Go forth, my pal, and give up dingers no extra.
As a lot because the Iglesias contract is a tidy piece of enterprise for Atlanta, my first response to the Allen-for-Dubón commerce was to marvel if there was a fuel leak at Daikin Park.
I don’t know should you’d need Dubón’s bat within the lineup day by day; he hit .241/.289/.355 in 2025, and solely as soon as up to now 5 seasons has he produced a wOBA that began with a 3. However the perfect Honduran-born baseball participant of the previous 30 years managed to get into a minimum of 130 video games in every of his three full seasons in Houston. How? Properly, regardless of being fairly inept towards right-handed pitching, Dubón is way extra ept towards lefties, tagging them for a 111 wRC+ in 2025. Maybe extra necessary, he appeared in a minimum of 17 video games at 5 totally different positions for Houston this previous season, and received into three or extra video games in every single place besides pitcher and catcher.
Dubón’s defensive numbers this 12 months have been bonkers sufficient to make him a 2.2 WAR participant in simply 398 plate appearances. That features 16 Outs Above Common in a hair over 500 innings throughout the 2 center infield positions. Dubón has been good, even superb, with the glove all through his profession; he received a pair of Gold Gloves throughout his time in Houston. However I’m skeptical that he awoke on March 1, 2025, and changed into Ozzie Smith in a mech go well with.
Nonetheless, Dubón is a really helpful utility participant. On condition that the Braves needed to plug holes at shortstop, third base, and each nook outfield spots in 2025, it’s clear why they’d be fascinated with Dubón.
The Braves’ eagerness to improve absolutely has to do with Allen’s efficiency. Thrust right into a beginning shortstop function, he hit .221/.284/.251 in 416 plate appearances. Allen was a terrific defender at quick; he was third on the place in each OAA and FRV. And I don’t give a rattling, as a result of should you’re attempting to place collectively a lineup that’s going to compete within the NL East, you simply can’t give 500 plate appearances to a man with a profession 53 wRC+. Not when your two direct rivals have Trea Turner and Francisco Lindor at that place.
So why would the Astros commerce Dubón, flawed as he’s, for an inferior participant? As a result of they’re attempting to get underneath the aggressive stability tax threshold. The Astros already non-tendered Ramón Urías, and downgrading from Dubón to Allen will save $4.3 million in arbitration awards, based on MLB Commerce Rumors. Plus Dubón is in his final 12 months of workforce management, whereas Allen has three extra seasons of arbitration to go. Not that both participant is on the stage the place years of management matter an important deal.
This commerce is completely the Astros behaving just like the pal who by no means fairly brings sufficient money to pay his finish of the tab, but when the Astros have been going to low-cost out someplace, I perceive why they’re doing it right here.
Dubón is a utility infielder and nook outfielder who hits lefties effectively, however not righties. Houston at the moment has the extraordinarily well-entrenched and much more right-handed beginning infield of Jose Altuve, Jeremy Peña, and Carlos Correa. If a type of guys goes down, the equally right-handed Isaac Paredes goes and will get his glove out of storage and slides over from DH. Within the nook outfield, Yordan Alvarez may be left-handed, however he hits lefties higher than nearly any right-handed batter on the planet.
The Astros don’t actually need a participant like Dubón to platoon with three guys without delay and make three begins every week. They’ll dwell with a man who can fill in anyplace defensively, and by no means take a significant at-bat. That’s Allen.
So congratulations to the Braves on getting meaningfully higher, and congratulations to Astros proprietor Jim Crane on not having to write down as massive a examine as he used to, whereas not damaging his workforce’s roster as a lot as he may have.