Braves select Craig Kimbrel, Dylan Dodd; trade Scott Blewett

The moves shake up Atlanta’s bullpen after yesterday’s implosion.

The Atlanta Braves have selected relievers Craig Kimbrel and Dylan Dodd from Triple-A Gwinnett. To make room on their 26-man roster, the Braves placed reliever Daysbel Hernandez on the 15-day IL and traded reliever Scott Blewett to the Baltimore Orioles for cash considerations.

These moves were reported yesterday, first with the Kimbrel news and later with the Dodd and Hernandez report.

Blewett heading to the Baltimore is a return to one of the organizations with whom he appeared prior to joining Atlanta this season. After allowing five runs – including four in the ninth – in yesterday’s historic loss to Arizona, Blewett was designated for assignment. He pitched reasonably well with Atlanta but did not have an option left and his 40-man roster spot was needed for Kimbrel.

Hernandez left his last appearance with what was first sited as numbness in his pinky finger; that has now been changed to forearm inflammation in his pitching arm.

Dodd returns to Atlanta for the third time this season from Triple-A. Now a reliever, he has leveraged a new cutter to find success with Gwinnett in recent weeks.

The headliner here is Kimbrel, the Braves all-time leader in saves and fifth all-time in MLB history. It will make his first appearance with Atlanta since the 2014 season after he was traded prior to Opening Day in 2015.

Expectations are relatively low for Kimbrel, who pitched well as the closer for Baltimore through the first half of last season before struggling so badly that he was released by the team prior to the end of the 2024 season.

Kimbrel was signed by the Braves as minor league free agent during Spring Training and appeared in 15 games with Gwinnett.