Atlanta reinstated Minter (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list Monday.
Minter will assume the 26-man active roster spot of right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver, who was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett after making a spot start in Sunday's win over the Brewers. The southpaw had been on the shelf since the All-Star break due to shoulder inflammation but received the green light to rejoin Atlanta after tossing a pair of scoreless innings over his two rehab appearances with Gwinnett. He should settle back in as one of the top setup men for closer Raisel Iglesias.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Rehab appearance on tap
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Minter (shoulder) will make a rehab appearance at Triple-A Gwinnett on Tuesday, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.
Minter has been on the injured list since mid-July due to mild left shoulder inflammation, but he felt good after throwing a bullpen session Saturday. His rehab assignment should be the final step in his recovery process before he's cleared to rejoin Atlanta's bullpen.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Throws bullpen session
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Minter (shoulder) threw a bullpen session Saturday, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Minter felt good during and after the workout, and manager Brian Snitker said the lefty could soon head out on a minor-league rehab assignment. The 29-year-old reliever has been on the injured list since July 15 due to mild left shoulder inflammation.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Exits with apparent injury
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Minter exited Saturday's game against the Rays with an apparent injury, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Minter was called upon to work the eighth inning while protecting a four-run lead. He retired the first batter he faced but was forced from the game immediately after. The nature of the issue is currently unclear.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Notches save No. 10
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Minter struck out the only batter he faced to record his 10th save of the season in a 6-5 win over the Tigers during the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader.
Raisel Iglesias worked the ninth inning in the matinee in a non-save situation, so Minter got the call in the nightcap after Joe Jimenez had breezed through the eighth and got the first two outs in the ninth. The southpaw has three saves in his last four games, and while Iglesias remains Atlanta's closer, manager Brian Snitker will likely continue to turn to Minter when Iglesias is unavailable.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Nabs second save in four days
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Minter earned a save against the Nationals on Saturday, allowing one run on one hit in one inning.
Closer Raisel Iglesias had pitched the previous two days for Atlanta, so Minter was called upon to close things out with the team up by three runs in the ninth inning. Minter served up a homer to Stone Garrett to begin his outing but retired the next three batters to close things out. It was the second save in four days for Minter, who is now up to nine on the season. He's clearly Atlanta's first choice to close when Iglesias is unavailable, but that likely won't amount to enough opportunities to notch more than a handful of additional saves the remainder of the campaign.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Picks up win in Arizona
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Minter (3-5) collected the win in Sunday's come-from-behind victory over the Diamondbacks, striking out one in two-thirds of an inning without allowing a run.
He needed 10 pitches (seven strikes) to notch the final two outs of the eighth inning and preserve a one-run deficit, making Minter the pitcher of record when Eddie Rosario launched a grand slam in the top of the ninth. The southpaw has struggled with his consistency this season, and since Raisel Iglesias returned from the IL in early May and reclaimed the closer role, Minter has a 5.06 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 14:3 K:BB over 10.2 innings.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Picks up save Thursday
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Minter allowed a hit and struck out two in a scoreless inning to earn the save in Thursday's 6-3 win over Miami.
Minter has dealt with some trouble in recent outings, but Atlanta's lead was never in danger Thursday. This was just his third scoreless effort in his last seven appearances. He has a 7.47 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 19:3 K:BB across 15.2 innings this season and is 7-for-9 in save chances, though Raisel Iglesias (shoulder) is nearing his return to the injured list and should quickly reclaim closing duties.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Nabs sixth save
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Minter earned a save in the first game of Monday's doubleheader against the Mets, allowing one run on one hit while striking out one batter over one inning.
Minter inherited a 9-7 lead in the ninth inning and retired the first two batters he faced. Eduardo Escobar then tagged him for a solo homer, but Minter got Brett Baty to line out to end the contest and earn the save. Despite the successful outcome, the run the southpaw allowed marked the fourth time in his past five outings that he has been scored upon. Over that stretch, Minter has taken three losses and a blown save while allowing 11 earned runs across 4.2 frames. With Raisel Iglesias (shoulder) expected back by the end of the week, Minter probably won't hang onto the closer role much longer.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Stunned by Miami
Rotowire
Minter (1-3) took the loss in Thursday's 5-4 loss to the Marlins. He allowed five runs on five hits while striking out two over two-thirds of an inning.
Minter entered the ninth inning with a 4-0 lead. He'd ultimately surrender five runs on five hits en route to a 5-4 loss. Minter has struggled mightily recently, allowing 10 earned runs in his last 3.2 innings. His ERA is up to 8.53 with a 1.42 WHIP and 15:3 K:BB while going 5-for-7 in save opportunities. Minter was likely to lose the closing role with Raisel Iglesias (shoulder) nearing a return, though his recent performance may force Atlanta to expedite a change in the back of their bullpen.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Notches fourth save
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Minter picked up a save against San Diego on Monday with a scoreless inning of work during which he struck out one batter.
Minter entered the contest in the ninth frame with Atlanta up two runs. The southpaw needed just 10 pitches to retire the side in order and secure a save for the second straight day. Minter has been very effective as Atlanta's closer with Raisel Iglesias (shoulder) on the injured list, going 4-for-5 in save chances and posting a 2.00 ERA, 0.78 WHIP and 8:2 K:BB over nine innings. Iglesias is likely to be out for at least another week, so Minter will retain short-term fantasy value, though there's a strong chance that he'll be cast back to a setup role once Iglesias returns.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Picks up third save
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Minter picked up the save with a scoreless ninth inning to close Sunday's victory over the Royals. He had one strikeout and didn't allow a baserunner.
Minter entered the ninth inning protecting a 5-4 lead and quickly retired Matt Duffy and Nicky Lopez before striking out Bobby Witt to earn his fourth save. Minter has allowed only two runs through eight innings of relief work and has converted on three of four save opportunities this season.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Snags second save
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Minter earned the save against the Reds on Wednesday with a perfect inning of work during which he struck out one batter.
After Atlanta took a one-run lead in the bottom of the ninth inning, the team turned to Minter to close things out in the ninth. He needed just 13 pitches to do so, retiring the side in order and fanning Jonathan India to record the final out. Minter has converted two of three save chances this season and has held the opponent scoreless in all but one of his seven outings thus far.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Nabs win Thursday
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Minter (1-0) picked up the win in Thursday's 7-6 victory over the Padres, giving up a hit and a walk in a scoreless ninth inning while striking out one.
The southpaw walked the first batter he faced in the top of the ninth and put runners on first and second with one out, but Minter coaxed a double play out of Xander Bogaerts to escape the jam. He was then rewarded with the win after Orlando Arcia's walkoff single in the bottom of the frame. Minter hasn't allowed a run through four innings to begin the season, collecting a win and and save in his four appearances, and with Raisel Iglesias (shoulder) still not throwing, his stint as Atlanta's closer should last at least another couple weeks, if not right on into May.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Notches first save
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Minter picked up the save with a scoreless ninth inning to close out Tuesday's 4-1 victory over St. Louis. He had one strikeout and didn't allow a baserunner.
Minter needed just 11 pitches to retire the side in order and secure his first save of the season. The left-hander is coming off a dominant 2022 campaign during which he had a 2.06 ERA and 94:15 K:BB across 70 innings, and he should continue to operate as Atlanta's fill-in closer until Raisel Iglesias (shoulder) is able to return from the injured list.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Works ninth in non-save situation
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Minter walked one and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Thursday's during a 7-2 win over the Nationals.
Atlanta was only up 4-2 heading into the top of the ninth but tacked on three more runs in its half of the frame, erasing the save situation for Minter. It's still reassuring that he was the clear choice to close out of the game for manager Brian Snitker, but with Raisel Iglesias (shoulder) hoping to return in mid-April, there may be only a handful of save opportunities for Minter before he gets bumped back to a setup role.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Could fill in at closer
Rotowire
Raisel Iglesias was diagnosed with low-grade shoulder inflammation Thursday and will begin the season on the injured list, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports, and Minter could be in line for some saves while the closer is sidelined.
Iglesias will be shut down for at least the next week while he deals with the shoulder issue. Minter has had a rough spring but remains the probable fill-in option for Iglesias after posting a brilliant 2.06 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 94:15 K:BB over 70 innings during 2022. Joe Jimenez is also a candidate.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Clean outing Monday
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Minter gave up two hits and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning during Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Rays.
Not that it means much, but Minter did pick up the save. The southpaw will be one of Raisel Iglesias' primary setup men this season and one of the top high-leverage options in the Atlanta bullpen, and in that role in 2022, Minter piled up a league-leading 35 holds with five wins and five saves in addition to his stellar 2.06 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 34.7 percent strikeout rate.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Avoids arbitration with Atlanta
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Minter signed a one-year, $4.3 million contract with Atlanta on Friday to avoid arbitration.
Minter was one of the best relievers in baseball in 2022, collecting a 2.06 ERA, five saves and a 94:15 K:BB over 70 innings with a major-league leading 35 holds. He'll presumably enter 2023 in a high-leverage role once again, but behind Raisel Iglesias in the pecking order for saves in Atlanta's bullpen.
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Braves' A.J. Minter: Collects fifth save
Rotowire
Minter walked one and struck out one in a third of an inning Friday to record his fifth save of the season in an 8-4 win over the Nationals.
Will Smith began the ninth inning with Atlanta ahead 8-1, but his struggles forced manager Brian Snitker to turn to Minter to quash a Washington rally as Kenley Jansen had pitched each of the prior two days. Over his last 10 appearances, a stretch that includes all five of his saves plus three of his 18 holds, Minter sports a 2.16 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 10:2 K:BB through 8.1 innings.
