The season has yet to begin, but the Atlanta Braves already need all the pitchers they can get.
With promising young starters Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep slated to start the season on the injured list, the Braves had to be concerned that their year will follow a similar trajectory to last year, when they used a franchise-record 46 pitchers. That may have been their motivation behind a recent minor-league depth addition.
According to the official transactions log, the Braves signed right-handed pitcher Jack Dashwood to a minor-league contract on Feb. 20. That deal did not appear on the log for several days after it was inked.
Dashwood, 28, spent five seasons as a member of the Los Angeles Angels organization, which selected him in the 12th round of the 2019 draft. He elected free agency in November following a year in which he posted a brutal 7.33 ERA in 48 appearances and 54 innings at Triple-A.
Though Dashwood has never had particularly clean minor-league statistics, it’s easy to see why the Braves liked him. He stands 6-foot-6, 240 pounds, and in 260 minor-league innings, he’s struck out an impressive 297 batters. He’ll definitely have to clean up his command, however, if he wants to make his long-awaited major league debut.
The Braves also signed Dashwood’s former UC Santa Barbara teammate, lefty Kyle Nelson, on Wednesday. If either of the former Gauchos turns into a major league bullpen option this season, Atlanta’s late February free agency sweep will have been successful.
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