Braves' A.J. Minter Drawing Interest From AL East Foe: Report

The top Atlanta Braves free agent remaining this offseason is drawing interest from potentially multiple teams in the AL East.

Atlanta Braves relief pitcher A.J. Minter / Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

Former Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Max Fried chose this offseason to continue his career with the New York Yankees. It's possible relief pitcher A.J. Minter will join his fellow southpaw in the AL East.

Masslive.com's Chris Cotillo reported on Jan. 7 that the Boston Red Sox are interested in Minter.

"Minter is a unique free agent case because he has been one of the best lefty relievers in baseball in recent years but underwent season-ending hip surgery and may not be ready for Opening Day," Cotillo wrote. "The Red Sox are interested here, and have had multiple conversations with the longtime Brave."

Minter didn't pitch after Aug. 11 because of his hip surgery. But he still had a strong 2024 campaign statistically, posting a 2.62 ERA and 1.019 WHIP with 35 strikeouts in 34.1 innings.

The left-hander has spent his entire 8-year MLB career with the Braves. He was a key member of the 2021 Braves bullpen that helped the team win the World Series.

Minter allowed 4 earned runs while striking out 18 batters in 12 frames during the 2021 postseason. He carried that great pitching into the 2022 regular season. In 2022, he registered a 2.06 ERA and 0.914 WHIP with 94 strikeouts in 70 innings.

Excluding the 2020 COVID-shortened season, those remain the best marks of Minter's career.

But he may have priced himself out of Atlanta. Whether due to his potential price tag or injury that could prevent him from being available on Opening Day, the Braves haven't shown much interest in bringing back Minter.

The possibility of Minter landing in New York with Fried also exists. Although there are no recent concrete reports that the Yankees are interested, SB Nation's Nick Power argued the Yankees should pursue Minter as a bullpen lefty specialist.

The Yankees currently don't have any left-handed relievers on their roster.

The Braves could use Minter back as a potential setup man. 2024 Atlanta setup man Joe Jiménez also needed surgery last fall and could miss all of the 2025 campaign.