The Braves have signed left-hander Kyle Nelson to a minor league deal, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America. It’s unclear if the MVP Sports Group client will be in major league or minor league camp.

Nelson, now 29, had his best stretch in the majors in 2022 and 2023. He tossed 93 innings for the Diamondbacks over those two seasons, primarily as a reliever though with a few starts as an opener. He allowed 3.39 earned runs per nine frames in that time, with a 24.9% strikeout rate and 7.2% walk rate that were both a bit better than league average.

Unfortunately, he hasn’t been at that level since. He required thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in April of 2024 and missed most of that season. He was back on the mound in 2025 but with diminished stuff and results. His fastball averaged around 92 miles per hour in 2022 and 2023 but was down to around 90 mph last year. He was mostly kept in the minors. He only made three big league appearances and posted an ugly 9.09 ERA in Triple-A. The Snakes outrighted him off the roster in July. He was selected back to the roster in August but was outrighted again in November. He elected free agency after that second outright.

For Atlanta, there’s no harm in bringing Nelson aboard via a non-roster pact. They project to have Dylan Lee and Aaron Bummer as their top two lefty relievers. José Suarez may be in the bullpen but likely as a long reliever/swingman. Dylan Dodd and Hayden Harris are on the 40-man but they are optionable and still have fairly limited big league track records, so they may oscillate between Triple-A and the majors this year. If Nelson can get back on track and onto the roster, he still has one option season remaining.

Photo courtesy of Allan Henry, Imagn Images