Braves Veteran Slams Organization for Craig Kimbrel Decision
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The Atlanta Braves waited over two months of the 2025 Major League Baseball season to give 37-year-old All-Star reliever Craig Kimbrel an opportunity.
Kimbrel, who signed a minor league deal with the Braves in March, spent the first two months of the 2025 season in Triple-A, waiting to join a struggling Atlanta team.
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After making 18 appearances in Triple-A — sporting a 2.00 ERA with 23 strikeouts over 18 innings — Kimbrel finally got the call. On June 6, he flew to San Francisco to join the team to start their series againt the Giants. Later that day, he pitched a scoreless inning, although he did allow a hit and a walk and needed a caught stealing and a pickoff to limit the damage.
In the box score, though, it was a zero.
The very next day, the Braves designated Kimbrel for assignment.
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 06: Craig Kimbrel #46 of the Atlanta Braves pitches against the San Francisco Giants in the bottom of the seventh inning at Oracle Park on June 06, 2025 in San...
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 06: Craig Kimbrel #46 of the Atlanta Braves pitches against the San Francisco Giants in the bottom of the seventh inning at Oracle Park on June 06, 2025 in San Francisco, California. More
Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
The move sent shockwaves through the league as Kimbrel, a nine-time All-Star who spent the first five years of his career with Atlanta, was treated like a "run-of-the-mill reliever.
Catcher James McCann, another veteran currently stuck with Atlanta's Triple-A team who was also teammates of Kimbrel's last season with the Baltimore Orioles, didn't hold back in his criticism of the organization for their treatment of Kimbrel.
"That really frustrated me and a lot of the guys in our locker room were very frustrated with it," McCann said to The Athletic. "It was strange to call him up for a day and DFA him. He's not just a run-of-the-mill reliever who became a journeyman after two or three years in the big leagues. He's a future Hall of Famer."
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McCann also thinks the travel contributed to his struggles on the mound — again, even though he put up a scoreless inning.
"I'm not going to speak for Craig, but he was also on a cross-county flight that morning. Maybe he didn't have his legs under him, I'm not sure," McCann said. "At the end of the day, he put up a zero. You can't ask for much more than a zero when you take the mound."
Kimbrel ended up clearing waivers and elected free agency, where it didn't take him long to find his next opportunity. He signed a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers, where he'll again look to work his way back to the major leagues.
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