Ray Kerr (elbow) begins minor league rehab

Kerr was non-tendered by Atlanta on Friday, and is back in the organization on the minors pact. The left-hander adds depth for the 2025 season.

The 30-year-old southpaw underwent season-ending elbow surgery to repair his UCL at the end of June and is expected to miss most — if not all — of the 2025 season. He could be an interesting option for a contending team on an incentive-laden two-year deal this winter.

Kerr is out for the season after undergoing elbow surgery. This move was made to open up a spot on the 40-man roster for Eli White. Kerr had a 5.64 ERA in 10 appearances with Atlanta this season.

Kerr is expected to undergo season-ending surgery, either Tommy John or the internal brace procedure. He was sent down June 15 after posting a 5.64 ERA in two starts and eight relief appearances for the Braves.

Kerr has made the trip from Gwinnett to Atlanta and vice versa a couple of times in 2024, and that is likely to continue through the campaign. He’s down to make room for Grant Holmes after Holmes had his contract selected from Gwinnett in the corresponding transaction.

Kerr is still in the mix as the Braves’ sixth starter, but the Braves declined to use him this time through. In consideration is starting him Sunday and pushing back Max Fried. It also remains to be seen whether the Braves will stick with Spencer Schwellenbach.

Kerr did strike out seven, but he also allowed five hits and a pair of walks in his spot-start to give Reynaldo López an extra day of rest. Kerr certainly has swing-and-miss stuff in his left arm, but the command isn’t good enough to be a starting pitcher. The 29-year-old could get another start Wednesday with no hurler scheduled for that game against Boston, but today’s poor results may change that plan.

The move gives Reynaldo López and extra day of rest as he’ll take the ball on Friday instead against the Athletics in an extremely favorable matchup. Kerr was tagged for five runs over four innings his last time out against the Pirates back on May 24. There isn’t much streaming appeal here for fantasy managers, although he does miss plenty of bats.

This was the first start for Kerr as a major leaguer and just the third he’s made at any level since 2021. The Pirates jumped on him in the first and the final line is ugly, but overall this was an encouraging outing for the 29-year-old lefty. He induced 13 swings and misses including eight from his curveball on his in just 13 swings. The pitch is downright nasty to go along with a fastball that touched 99 MPH and a splitter he threw more sparingly. This is a more exciting repertoire than what the recently demoted Bryce Elder brings to the table and makes Kerr worth of keeping an eye on.

Kerr will start Friday night’s game against the Pirates. The 29-year-old left-hander has a 2.89 ERA and 0.96 WHIP in four appearances out of the bullpen with Atlanta this season. The Braves need a fresh arm and while Kerr was optioned on Monday, he didn’t appear in any games for Gwinnett.