Atlanta Braves
Back to teams with a new closer vacancy. The Braves have had one of the more stable closing situations in the league over the last three years before having to now deal with their current opening.
After re-signing closer Raisel Iglesias to a four-year contract prior to the 2022 season, the Angels promptly sent him to Atlanta later that year at the trade deadline. It was one of the better trades in recent Braves history.
In his Braves career, Iglesias has accumulated a 2.35 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, and 97 saves over the course of 222 games. Those 97 saves are tied for fifth most in MLB since the day he was acquired by Atlanta.
Iglesias aside, the Braves bullpen wasn’t as bad as some of the other teams on this list but they still weren’t great. Atlanta relievers were 19th in MLB with a combined 4.19 ERA and were also middle of the road in FIP (4.26, 21st), walk rate (9.1%, 14th), and hard hit rate (39.4%, 14th).
The Braves could look to bring Iglesias back, but he does hit his age 36 season next year. Instead, perhaps they start another multi-year run with a new closer like Williams.
St. Louis Cardinals
Williams began his career feasting on NL Central hitting, putting up a 2.04 ERA, .165 batting average against, and 38.2% strikeout rate against divisional opponents before being traded to the AL. So why not return to that comfortable environment if given the chance?