Braves: Jorge Mateo finds a new home
It took a little while, but Jorge Mateo has found a new home, inking a minor-league deal with the Tampa Bay Rays. Sources: Jorge Mateo has agreed to a Major League deal with the Tampa Bay Rays. — Francys Romero (@FrancysRomero) August 13, 2026 It’s impossible to know what kind of conversations occurred behind closed […]
It took a little while, but Jorge Mateo has found a new home, inking a minor-league deal with the Tampa Bay Rays.
Sources: Jorge Mateo has agreed to a Major League deal with the Tampa Bay Rays.
— Francys Romero (@FrancysRomero) August 13, 2026
It’s impossible to know what kind of conversations occurred behind closed doors, but I wouldn’t have minded keeping Mateo in the organization — and there’s a pretty good argument he never should have been designated for assignment in the first place.
Ha-Seong Kim is rotting on the bench simply because the Braves paid him $20 million in the offseason. It’s certainly not because of anything he’s done on the field, where he’s been worse offensively, defensively, and on the bases than just about everybody on the roster. At least Mateo offered plus defense and elite speed for those moments when a pinch runner is needed.
On top of that, Jim Jarvis has cooled off considerably after a hot start, and it’s fair to wonder how much longer he should stay on the major-league roster. He’s still young, so if he isn’t going to start most nights, he’s better off continuing to develop in Gwinnett.
In 65 games for the Braves this season, Mateo hit .240 with four home runs and a .665 OPS. Most of that production came over the first couple of months, though. Since June 2nd (30 games), he hit just .120 with a .330 OPS in 53 plate appearances.
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(Photo by Chris Arjoon/Icon Sportswire)
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