More than a week’s worth of Spring Training games are in the books for your Atlanta Braves. In less than four weeks, the Braves will be wrapping up their first regular season series with the San Diego Padres.
With the team’s starting line-up pretty much a given – only the determination of the interim solution for right-field until Ronald Acuña, Jr. returns is still in flux – how Atlanta finishes out its bench is still an open question.
As it stands now, the position player roster locks for Opening Day 2025 are:
Catcher: Sean Murphy*
Infield: Matt Olson, Ozzie Albies, Orlando Arcia, Austin Riley
Outfield: Jurickson Profar, Michael Harris II, Jarred Kelenic
Designated Hitter: Marcell Ozuna
That’s nine players accounted for and four opening bench positions for what will be a 13-man position player group.
At catcher, so far this spring, Atlanta has given top prospect Drake Baldwin five starts – with his sixth coming on Sunday, March 2. He’s been excellent, hitting .444/.583/.586 with three walks, four hits and no strike outs so far. It still seems like a long shot that Baldwin will go north with Atlanta, but it sure seems like he has little left to prove in the in minors.
The assumption for most of the offseason is that Chadwick Tromp will take over the back-up catcher duties – one that will be reduced to one start a week based on Atlanta’s want to give Murphy the strong side of the platoon in 2025. Tromp may be that guy, but long-time MLB-veterans Sandy Léon and Curt Casali could still be a factor. Léon has slugged two home runs, which helps his case, but it is still early. Casali hasn’t done much offensively, but did start 38 games for the San Francisco Giants last year while Léon played exclusively in the minors in 2024.
Tromp has youth on his side and is out of options, so he still seems the odds-on favorite to make the Opening Day roster, but it is worth keeping an eye-on.
*News of Murphy’s cracked rib broke – no pun intended – just before the publication of this article. Depending on how quickly Murphy heals – with four to six weeks putting his availability for Opening Day in jeopardy – questions around the back-up catcher role will intensify. Murphy’s recovery timeline could put Baldwin in-line to see action early in the season or, if Murphy is able to return quickly an only miss a handful of games, it is possible the Braves could use Casali or Leon with Tromp to fille the gap.
For the outfield, Kelenic is presumed to be a roster lock, but he does have an option remaining so if he struggles and two of the other outfield-only camp invitees impress, there is at least a pathway to see Kelenic start the season with Gwinnett.
The four players locked in the battle for one, or at best two, positions are Jake Marisnick, Conner Capel, Bryan De La Cruz and Carlos D. Rodriguez. All four have his well in the early going, with De La Cruz’s two doubles boosting his slugging above the other three. Rodriguez seems the longest shot given his lack of MLB experience.
On the other end of the spectrum, Marisnick has a wealth of MLB-experence and still offers excellent defense at all three outfield positions. De La Cruz has been the presumed platoon partner with Kelenic since his signing, despite his recent MLB struggles, but also has options remaining. Those two right-handed batters could be locked a battle for most of spring, if Atlanta wants to prioritize defense, Marisnick could have the edge.
With Kelenic starting the spring off hitting well, Capel’s performance is less of an interesting theme to keep an eye on. The left-handed Capel would likely only make the Braves roster if he were to beat-out Kelenic for a roster spot, but was a long-shot at best, at seems even less likely given Kelenic’s performance.
The infield position battle comes down to one questions? Does Atlanta carry a player who can play capable shortstop as a back-up?
Nick Allen, a defensive standout, would seem to have the inside track if the Braves want a plus defender at shortstop on the bench. In his past three seasons with the Athletics, he’s shown little with the bat, but he is out of the options, so there would be risk exposing him to waivers.
The other player to keep an eye on if the Braves were to do this route, is Christian Cairo – son of Miguel Cairo – who was selected by Atlanta in the Rule 5 draft. If Cairo doesn’t make the big league roster, the Braves would have to offer him back to Cleveland.
In the first week of Spring Training, Allen has hit better than Cairo, but that may not ultimately play a role in the team’s decision.
If the Braves opt to go with a player who could get them through a game, if needed, at shortstop due to injury – and nothing more – then Eli White and Luke Williams both fill that bill. Williams has more MLB experience on the dirt, but White came to camp with the Braves acknowledging that White, a former Clemson University shortstop, would see a lot of infield time.
White has hit will thus far, slashing .571/.625/.571 coming into Sunday’s game – when in which he is starting in center field. White has looked competent at second base but looked stretched at shortstop.
As for Williams, who like White has seen limited time on Atlanta’s roster the last two seasons, he has hit a dismal .083/.154/.333 in his playing time. While he can play anywhere on the infield or outfield – he is a better defender at shortstop than White.
For Williams, the question may be could he beat Allen or Cairo for what would essentially be back-up shortstop position. Williams does offer big league experience in the outfield, something neither of the other competitors have.
Other options for the final bench spot could be Garrett Cooper, likely as a pinch-hit option, or another utility player who could play a corner outfield position but provide more infield versatility than Cooper who can only play first base on the infield.
Just re-assigned Eddy Alvarez – the two-time Olympic silver medalist (and one of only six people to win a medal in both both the winter and summer games) would add to Braves lore, but his bat was cold this spring, sealing his fair early. Charles Leblanc, another veteran player with some big league experience, could hand on for a few more games but is likely to find himself at the minor league camp as well.
Prospect Nacho Alvarez, Jr., more than Baldwin, needs to play every day. He’s still young and could still have a future with Atlanta, but he doesn’t need to be stashed on the bench.
So, if the season started today, who are the four players to round-out the Braves bench?
It looks like Tromp, White, De La Cruz are still the favorites.
If they Braves think they could slip Allen through waivers in a couple of weeks, and like what they see defensively from Cairo, the Rule 5 pick could get the nod so Allen could play every day at Triple-A.
Williams, who is also out of options, would seem to be a better fit as the last bench bat, he spent much of last season in that exact role, but when the Braves were so desperate for an infielder last September that they traded for Cavan Biggio, it was Williams who finished the season with the Stripers.
Could White push De La Cruz off the roster if they Braves wanted keep Allen or Cairo? Is Tromp’s spot locked? Do the Braves believe in Williams enough bring him north? Could Marisnick’s defensive ability win out over De La Cruz, especially the team wanted to give Kelenic the option to start most of the games until Acuña, Jr. returns?
Injuries, trades and free agent signings could be a factor – and things do have a way of working themselves out – but the final bench spots seem no more clear now than they did before Spring Training started.
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