The defending World Series champion Atlanta Braves beat the MLB trade deadline buzzer in a big way, acquiring star closer Raisel Iglesias from the Los Angeles Angels Tuesday evening.
According to MLB insider Robert Murray, Atlanta has picked up the 32-year-old reliever from Los Angeles in exchange for veteran reliever Jesse Chavez and prospect Tucker Davidson in an absolutely huge move.
Atlanta entered Tuesday’s action with a 62-41 record and in second place in the National League East. Currently 3.5 games behind the New York Mets, this could help shift the division race in Atlanta’s favor.
Raisel Iglesias stats (2017-22): 21-34 record, 2.99 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 11.6 K/9, 150 saves
In return, Los Angeles picks up Triple-A pitcher Tucker Davidson as the headliner in this trade. Davidson, 26, has seen limited action for the big league club this season — pitching to a 1-2 record with a 6.46 ERA and 1.83 WHIP in four games (three starts). He will likely replace the recently-traded Noah Syndergaard in the Angels’ rotation. Davidson entered this season as Atlanta’s fifth-ranked prospect, per MLB.com.
Related: Atlanta Braves standing in our most-recent MLB power rankings
Impact of the Atlanta Braves adding Raisel Iglesias
It was earlier in the week that Atlanta traded reliever Will Smith to the Houston Astros for starting pitcher Jake Odorizzi. It now fills the void left by Smith in a big way.
Iglesias will now join an elite-level bullpen that includes closer Kenley Jansen as well as Collin McHugh and A.J. Minter. He figures to be the top set-up man for Jansen. He could also take over as Atlanta’s closer.
In reality, this should shorten games big time for the Atlanta Braves moving forward in the regular season and heading into the playoffs. That’s no small thing with starting pitchers Max Fried and Kyle Wright pitching at elite levels.