The Atlanta Braves are in full-on triage mode. On Monday, they took another swing at plugging the gaps in their battered starting rotation. Just 24 hours after acquiring Erick Fedde from the Cardinals, Atlanta struck again—this time picking up veteran right-hander Carlos Carrasco from the New York Yankees.
The deal was for cash considerations or a player to be named later. It adds another experienced (if weathered) arm to a team that’s been absolutely decimated by injuries this July.
Carrasco, 38, has spent most of the 2025 season bouncing between the majors and minors. After being designated for assignment by the Yankees earlier in the year, he still managed to make eight appearances for New York, logging 32 innings with a 5.91 ERA, 25 strikeouts, and 7 home runs allowed.
He’s not the strikeout machine he once was, and the long ball has been a problem, but right now? The Braves aren’t shopping for upside—they’re shopping for availability. And Carrasco is available.
Desperate Times, Desperate Arms For Braves
This move comes at a time when the Braves’ once-promising rotation has been shredded. Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, and Grant Holmes are all on the IL, joining the full Opening Day rotation that’s already out of commission.
Spencer Strider, Joey Wentz, and newly acquired Fedde are trying to hold the line. Carrasco becomes the fourth warm body in a situation that’s more about patching holes than planning for October.
The risk is low—virtually zero, in fact. Even if Carrasco only offers a few decent innings or a spot start, that might be enough to buy the Braves time until someone else gets healthy or until Hurston Waldrep finally gets the call from Triple-A Gwinnett.
Either way, Atlanta isn’t sitting still, and the message is clear: if you can throw five innings without needing an MRI the next day, you’ve got a shot to wear the tomahawk.
