Athletics Acquire Jared Johnson From Braves In Exchange for Nick Allen
The Braves and Athletics flipped organizational depth pieces Monday evening, when the A’s sent shortstop Nick Allen to the Braves for righthanded reliever Jared Johnson.
Allen has played in parts of three seasons for the A’s over the last three seasons. He has been worth -0.4 fWAR in total in that span thanks to an extremely light bat, but glovework that has been praised since his prep days. He’ll offer the Braves a reliable glove and presumably bench candidate as a backup infielder.
In exchange, the A’s will take a flier on a big-armed righthander who has premium pure stuff but a spotty track record of performance in the minor leagues in Johnson, a 6-foot-2, 225-pound pitcher who gets into the triple digits.
Braves Receive
Nick Allen, SS
Age: 26
Allen originally signed with the A’s for $2 million as a third-round draft pick in 2017. Allen flashed tremendous defensive ability at shortstop as a high schooler out of San Diego and has largely maintained his status as a glove-first prospect throughout his career. The offense has always been his biggest question and in parts of three major league seasons Allen has hit just .209/.254/.283 with a 55 OPS+ and similar 53 wRC+. Among players with at least 700 plate appearances in the last three seasons, that 53 wRC+ is good for the worst in baseball. His value is almost entirely driven by his glovework and defensive versatility on the infield. Allen has no remaining options available.
A’s Receive
Jared Johnson, RHP
Age: 23
Johnson signed for $257,500 as a 14th rounder out of high school in the 2019 draft after he popped up during the spring with a fastball that was touching 97 mph in smalltown Smithville, Miss. The Braves spent the first two seasons of Johnson’s career developing him as a starter, but he converted to a relief role in 2023. He pitched the entirety of the 2024 season at High-A Rome in his age-23 season, posted a 2.60 ERA over 52 innings and managed a 26.4% strikeout rate and 11.7% walk rate.
Johnson has huge pure stuff and mostly pitches with a fastball that averaged 97 mph this season and has touched 100-101 mph with solid riding life. He pairs the fastball with a hard slider/cutter in the upper 80s and lower 90s that was a consistent swing-and-miss pitch for him this year. Control has always been the limiting factor with Johnson, who owns a 13.4% career walk rate in the minors. He’s a no-doubt reliever and has yet to pitch above the High-A level.
