The Braves announced that they have signed right-hander Joel Payamps to a one-year, $2.25MM deal. Payamps is represented by Equity Baseball.
After Payamps was designated for assignment by the Brewers in September, Atlanta stepped in to claim the righty on waivers, and Payamps logged two appearances and 2 2/3 innings with his new team before season’s end. The Braves then outrighted Payamps off their 40-man roster and (since he has been previously outrighted in his career) he elected free agency rather than accept the assignment.
The move was essentially an early non-tender on the Braves’ part, as Payamps was projected to earn $3.4MM in his second trip through the arbitration process. This new contract brings Payamps back into the fold on a lower price tag, and a number that the Braves were surely more comfortable paying in the wake of a disappointing 2025 season for the veteran reliever.
Payamps posted okay but unremarkable numbers over his first four big league seasons before taking things up a notch as a member of Milwaukee’s bullpen in 2023-24. The reliever posted a 2.78 ERA, 26.1% strikeout rate, and 6.7% walk rate over 129 2/3 innings, emerging as a trusted setup man in front of closer Devin Williams.
In 2025, however, Payamps’ effectiveness suddenly went south, with a 6.84 ERA, 20.5 K%, and a 7.7 BB% over 26 1/3 combined innings with the Brewers and Braves. While his 4.16 SIERA was nothing special, it at least reflected some of the misfortune (such as a .346 BABIP and a 60.4% strand rate) that went into Payamps’ performance.
More to come…