Braves make a splash, signing closer Will Smith to three-year, $40 million deal
After two consecutive National League East championships gave way to a pair of NL Division Series losses marred by shaky bullpen work, the Atlanta Braves moved aggressively to fix that bug, agreeing to terms with left-hander Will Smith, the top free-agent reliever available, on a three-year, $40 million contract.
Smith, a 30-year-old Georgia native, saved 34 games in 38 chances for the San Francisco Giants, and struck out 96 batters in 65 ⅓ innings. His general dominance showed emphatically that he was well-recovered from Tommy John surgery on his left elbow that cost him all of the 2017 season.
Now, he has set the bar on a relief market that is long on high-appearance, seventh-inning types but very thin on established closers.
Little wonder that the Braves opted to jump the market.
They won 97 games this year and 90 in 2018 and aimed to shore up this year’s weak relief corps by dealing for Mark Melancon, Shane Greene and Chris Martin at the trade deadline.
But the Braves bullpen blew leads in Games 1 and 4 of the NLDS – Melancon losing the first game, Greene blowing a save opportunity in Game 4 – and the depth of the unit was dinged when an oblique injury knocked Martin out of the series early.
Enter Smith, whose $39 million pact nearly equals that of the top lefty on last year’s relief market, Zack Britton, who signed for three years and $40 million.
Smith’s deal should only be a starting point for Atlanta, which sees third baseman Josh Donaldson’s $23 million salary come off the books. They still need to replace him at third base and also lengthen a rotation that falls off significantly after rookie Mike Soroka and lefty Max Fried.
For now, the ninth inning is accounted for – and the winter’s best relief option is now off the board.