Braves cut ties with former Guardians, Yankees starter for a fourth time

Braves cut ties with former Guardians, Yankees starter for a fourth time originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The Atlanta Braves have designated a veteran starting pitcher for assignment for the fourth time since last August. 

On Friday, the NL East club announced that right-hander Carlos Carrasco was DFA’d. Right-hander Anthony Molina was recalled from Triple-A as the corresponding move. 

Carrasco, 39, went unclaimed on waivers the last three times the Braves cut him loose, and he wound up signing minor league contracts with Atlanta in each of those instances. 

“Atlanta will have five days to trade Carrasco, place him on waivers, or release him. The former doesn’t seem likely, based on how they’ve handled him to this point,” wrote Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors. “It’s quite probable that Carrasco will hit waivers, and if he goes unclaimed, he’ll briefly become a free agent and re-sign with the Braves.” 

Carrasco has made four appearances out of the bullpen for the Braves in 2026, allowing two earned runs with four strikeouts and no walks in 7.1 innings. 

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With an average fastball velocity of 91.3 mph, he has thrown his changeup 31% of the time in 2026. 

From 2009-20, Carrasco was a reliable piece of the Cleveland Guardians‘ rotation, making 25 or more starts four consecutive seasons from 2015-18.

He was one of the players traded from the Guardians to the New York Mets in the Francisco Lindor deal in 2021. 

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