The Braves signed outfielder Bryan De La Cruz to a split contract for 2025, the team announced Sunday.
With a split contract, a player earns different salaries in the minor leagues and major leagues. This means De La Cruz is on the 40-man roster and will compete for a spot on the big-league team in spring training, but could end up just being depth. He has minor-league options, so the Braves can put him at Triple-A Gwinnett to begin the season without losing him. And if he’s in the big leagues, his salary almost certainly wouldn’t be much higher than the $760,000 league minimum for 2025.
Thus, signing De La Cruz isn’t much different than a waiver claim for the Braves. There’s a good chance he’s just depth for the club. He can be shuttled up and down between Gwinnett and Atlanta, or removed from the roster if the Braves need that 40-man spot.
And because of all this, the Braves seem likely to add another outfielder before the season begins — one that can be in their big-league lineup. They’ve been relatively quiet this offseason, but their biggest moves probably haven’t happened yet.
Atlanta must fill an outfield spot because Ronald Acuña Jr. won’t be ready for opening day as he completes his rehab following surgery to repair his torn ACL. Jarred Kelenic played well in spots in 2024, but the Braves probably can’t yet count on him as an everyday guy until they see more. This leads you to believe the Braves will bring in a proven outfielder — or at least try to do so.
Early in the offseason, Braves president of baseball operations and general manager Alex Anthopoulos added payroll flexibility to address his needs for 2025. He did this knowing he wouldn’t have Acuña or Spencer Strider (elbow surgery rehab) on the opening-day roster and that Joe Jiménez (knee surgery) will miss a significant chunk of the season.
The Braves know they need an outfielder. It doesn’t seem like De La Cruz will be the move they make to address that need. He’s probably depth more than anything.
Braves fans might know of De La Cruz from his time with the Marlins from 2021-24. With Miami and Pittsburgh last season, De La Cruz hit .233 with a .654 OPS.
Over the summer, the Marlins traded De La Cruz to the Pirates, who tried to push toward the postseason. The outfielder hit .200 over 160 at-bats. In November, the Pirates non-tendered him, which made him a free agent.
De La Cruz features a bit of pop.
He hit 19 homers in 2023 and 21 this past season. Defensively, the metrics say his range is limited but that he has good arm strength.
Don’t fret just yet, Braves fans. The Braves didn’t sign De La Cruz thinking he’d be their starting outfielder on opening day. But depth is always necessary.
Now, we wait for their next move.
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