Braves Acquire Tommy Milone From Orioles To Aid Rotation

Image credit: Tommy Milone (Mike Carlson/Getty)

In just 32 games, the Braves have already used 10 starting pitchers. With ace Mike Soroka sidelined until 2021 with a torn Achilles tendon, the Braves have Cy Young Award candidate Max Fried heading the rotation and a whole lot of uncertainty behind him.

No other member of the Braves Opening Day rotation remains on the club’s active roster. Rookie righthander Ian Anderson had an excellent debut last week, and Josh Tomlin has been serviceable as a fill-in, even if the Braves prefer him working out of the bullpen. Lefthander Cole Hamels is trying to work back from a triceps injury, but the Braves have a very unsettled rotation for a team that leads the National League East.

With that in mind, Atlanta added a low-cost reinforcement on Aug. 30 by trading two players to be named later for Orioles lefthander Tommy Milone.

For the Orioles, the deal provides a quick return on a reclamation project. Milone had been a surprisingly effective member of the Orioles rotation (1-4, 3.99) after signing a minor league contract during the offseason.

Nov. 5 Update: Minor league shortstop A.J. Graffanino and second baseman Greg Cullen have been announced the players to be named later. 

BRAVES ACQUIRE

Tommy Milone, LHP
Age: 33

A fill-in starter for much of the past half-decade, Milone is your classic nibbling lefty with a wide array of pitches. Never a hard-thrower, he now has one of the slowest fastballs in the league. He sits at 86 mph and tops out below 90, but Milone’s fastball is just used to keep hitters from focusing too much on his excellent changeup. Milone’s upper-70s changeup is thrown nearly as often as his fastball. He usually dots it low and away to righthanded hitters, where they can’t do much with it. Milone lives on the edges of the strike zone. When he catches too much of the plate, he generally gets punished. Milone’s command is better than his control and he is having his best season in years because he’s doing a better job of keeping the ball in the yard. His 1.5 home runs allowed per nine innings is his best home run rate since 2015. Milone’s addition gives the Braves someone who should be able to go four or five innings on a regular basis. He helps stabilize a rotation that was in dire need of reinforcements, but he doesn’t do much to help the Braves’ search for playoff-caliber starters beyond Fried. He will be a free agent after this season.

 

ORIOLES ACQUIRE

A.J. Graffanino, SS
Age: 23

Graffanino is the son of longtime big league infielder Tony Graffanino and ranked as the Braves No. 27 prospect entering the season. He hit .318/.344/.382 in his pro debut in 2018 but played just one game in 2019 due to unspecified gastrointestinal issues. Graffanino is a strong defensive shortstop with twitchy athleticism, above-average range, solid hands and an above-average arm. He’s a slash-and-dash contact hitter from the left side with little power—he didn’t hit a single home run in three years in college at Washington—so his rise will be incumbent on him proving he can hit upper-level pitching. If nothing else, he’ll provide solid defense at premium position in the Orioles system as long as he’s healthy.

Greg Cullen, 2B
Age: 23

Cullen led the nation in hitting (.458) for Niagara in 2018 and was drafted by the Braves in the 15th round. He continued to perform in his first full season, batting .270/.393/.401 with nine home runs and 58 RBI for low Class A Rome in 2019. Cullen is undersized at 5-foot-10, 190 pounds, but he shows enough natural feel to hit from the left side that evaluators consider him a potential starter on a second-division team or a quality lefthanded-hitting bench option on a playoff contender. He is a potentially average hitter who should post high on-base percentages due to his above-average plate discipline, and he has a chance to grow into average power due to his natural hitting ability and strong pitch selection. Cullen’s main draw is his bat, but he plays second base well enough to project to play there in the majors without a problem.