The Atlanta Braves announced Monday they have agreed to a one-year contract to bring back right-handed reliever Jim Johnson, who will earn $2.5 million in 2016, according to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman.
Johnson signed with the Braves nearly a year ago to the day and found a haven in Atlanta, with a 2.25 ERA and opposing slash line of .256/.311/.635 over 48 innings in 49 appearances before being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the deadline.
His tenure in Atlanta was sandwiched between an abysmal 2014—in which he posted a 7.09 ERA and 1.950 WHIP, both career highs, with the Oakland Athletics and Detroit Tigers—and a 10.13 ERA in 18.2 innings over 23 appearances with the Dodgers to finish 2015.
As Dave Brown of FanGraphs noted, the Braves were the benefactors in that exchange—a three-team, 13-player trade that also sent starter Alex Wood to L.A.:
Despite claims to the contrary, the Braves are in the midst of a massive rebuild that has seen staples such as Andrelton Simmons, Craig Kimbrel and Jason Heyward traded in the past 12 months as the team continues to load up on prospects for a hopeful playoff run by the time it moves into its new stadium in 2017.
The Braves had the majors’ second-worst bullpen ERA last year (4.69) and have made revamping their relieving corps a priority, though Johnson’s fit remains to be seen. Arodys Vizcaino finished 2015 as the team’s closer, but perhaps a strong spring to follow a great run, albeit brief, a year ago will be enough for Johnson to contend for the job.
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