The Braves have acquired right-hander Davis Daniel from the Angels, according to releases from both teams.
The Halos assigned Daniel earlier this week. Mitch Farris, a left-hander, is going the opposite direction.
Daniel, who will be 28 in June, has limited major league experience to date. Between last year and this year, he pitched 42 2/3 innings with the Angels, giving up 5.06 earned runs per nine. His 8.1% walk rate is roughly normal, while his 19.9% strikeout rate and 39.1% ground ball rate are both slightly below average.
Atlanta is undoubtedly more interested in Daniel’s recent Triple-A season. He made 21 starts and one relief appearance with the Sale Lake Bees, totaling 118 innings. His 5.42 ERA over that period is clearly not impressive, but the Bees play in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. Daniel struck out 23.3% of hitters he faced, walking only 6.5%. His 4.41 FIP was almost precisely one run better than his ERA.
Daniel still has an option, so he can add to Atlanta’s rotation depth without taking up an active roster spot. Atlanta plans to employ a rotation led by Chris Sale, Reynaldo López, and Spencer Schwellenbach. Spencer Strider will return to the mix once he recovers from his April internal brace surgery. Until then, back-end alternatives include Grant Holmes, Ian Anderson, AJ Smith-Shawver, Hurston Waldrep, Bryce Elder, and others. Daniel will join that group, which will probably compete for slots on the depth chart.
Atlanta selected Farris in the 14th round of the 2023 draft, at the age of 24 in February. Since then, he’s pitched 124 2/3 innings in 21 starts and nine relief appearances in the minors. During that time, he had a 2.96 ERA, 30% strikeout rate, and 9.7% walk rate. He spent the majority of 2024 in High-A and will help the Angels make up for the pitching depth they lost when Daniel was released. Farris isn’t Rule 5 eligible until December 2026, so he won’t need a roster place for quite some time.
