The Braves are turning to an old star for some much-needed bullpen help after a disastrous day.
Atlanta is calling up Craig Kimbrel from Triple-A, marking his second stint with the team, according to multiple reports on Thursday.
Kimbrel, 37, signed a minor league contract with the Braves ahead of this season and pitched to a 2.00 ERA with 23 strikeouts in 18 innings in Gwinnett.
The Alabama native was a third-round draft pick by Atlanta in 2008, with the reliever spending his first five MLB seasons with the club.
Kimbrel was a four-time All-Star during his time with the Braves, along with leading the National League in saves for four straight seasons.
The seven-time All-Star most recently pitched with the Orioles and had a down year, pitching to a 5.33 ERA with six blown saves in 2024.
Kimbrel’s 440 saves rank second among active players, and the Braves hope that he can contribute to their bullpe that was the victim of a devastating meltdown on Thursday.
Going into the ninth inning with a 10-4 lead over the Diamondbacks, the bullpen imploded, giving up seven runs and ultimately losing 11-10.
The Diamondbacks scored four on righty Scott Blewett before the Braves turned to closer Raisel Iglesias, who gave up three and ultimately picked up the loss.
“Six runs up in the ninth, you feel like you should win the game,” Atlanta manager Brian Snitker told reporters. “It’s a horrible loss, and now we get to sit on it for five hours on the airplane. We’re all going to be miserable, and we should. We didn’t execute. We got to put the game away, and we didn’t do that.”
Snitker continued by saying he plans to test out new things in an attempt to turn around the bullpen.
“We’re going to mix and match, and guys are going to get a lot more opportunities,” Snitker said. “We’re going to have to make it work, because it’s what we got.”
