Martín Pérez returns to Braves on a minor league deal

ATLANTA, GA - MARCH 31: Martín Pérez #33 of the Atlanta Braves pitches in the fifth inning during the game against the Athletics at Truist Park on March 31, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Jack Casey/Atlanta Braves/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Ah, the veteran DFA process for a player without minor league options has come and gone full circle. In the case of Martín Pérez and the Braves, this situation felt like it went from “Huh? He got DFA’d?” to “Okay, maybe he’ll go through the entire waiver wire and not get claimed” to “Oh. He didn’t get claimed but he’s not going to Gwinnett, either. Farewell!” to “Ah, he just signed another minor league deal. He’s back.”

Indeed, Pérez is back with the Braves after having signed a minor league deal with the organization on Wednesday morning. Jon Heyman of the New York Post was the first to report the news.

If this process sounds familiar, it’s because we saw it play out a bunch of times with Jesse Chavez near the end of his career. I’m not saying that Martín Pérez is the new Coach Hat Man around here but it’s at least good to know that he’ll be sticking around in the minors for the time being. Pérez was pretty effective as a fifth starter for the Braves as he produced an ERA of 3.14 and a FIP of 4.07 across 14.1 innings of work and three appearances. Those numbers aren’t spectacular but for a fifth starter, that is perfectly fine.

For the time being, it seems like he’ll be staying active at Gwinnett while serving as organizational depth in case the Braves need him for a start or two — then he’ll either pitch his way into staying in the rotation or we’ll just have to do this merry-go-round all over again at some point down the road. We’ll see what happens.