Atlanta Braves Say Goodbye to Jonny Venters
By Dylan Smith
On Saturday, the Atlanta Braves announced that Jonny Venters’ second tour with the club has come to an end. Jerry Blevins is set to join the team in Venters’ place.
On Saturday, the Atlanta Braves announced that Jonny Venters‘ second tour with the club has come to an end. The lefty struggled through nine appearances throughout the early part of the season. His release is a surprise and was likely a hard decision for management to make.
The once dominant lefty allowed nine earned runs in only four and two-thirds innings pitched throughout the early part of this season. In a corresponding move, the Braves have brought back Jerry Blevins, who was designated for assignment earlier in the week.
Jonny Venters first introduced himself to Major League Baseball in 2010, as he pitched a dominant 83 innings out of the Braves’ bullpen. As a rookie, Venters posted an ERA of 1.95 and an ERA+ of 201. The lefty topped that in his second season as he posted an ERA of 1.84 and an ERA+ of 208. The Braves used Venters, Craig Kimbrel, and Eric O’Flaherty together to form one of the best bullpens in Major League Baseball. Venters’ numbers slide slightly in 2012 as the injury bug began to bite.
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After five years without a Major League appearance, Jonny Venters reemerged in 2018 with the Tampa Bay Rays. What happened during his five-year hiatus? As I am sure you all know, Venters missed five seasons while recovering from three (and a half) Tommy John surgeries…
During his 2018 stint with the Tampa Bay Rays, Venters posted an ERA of 3.86 and an ERA+ of 110 through 22 appearances. The Atlanta Braves later re-acquired Venters in July as the lefty helped the team’s bullpen during their division-winning finish. Upon his return to Atlanta, Venters reacclimated himself quite nicely. The lefty posted an ERA of 3.54 and an ERA+ of 117 through 28 appearances.
Jonny Venters is far from the pitcher that he used to be, but he should still be a serviceable MLB arm. The surgeries show his toughness and his velocity still sits at a reasonable mark. If Venters can figure out his command, we could see him join and help another MLB team. Many teams could be interested in a left-handed ground ball machine who has Venters’ track record.
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This might be goodbye for Venters with the Atlanta Braves, but it could be the beginning of a new experience. I certainly hope that Venters is able to continue his career as his story deserves to live on through more Major League appearances.