Charlie

Culberson

Culberson spent 11 years in professional baseball and the better part of eight years in MLB with the Dodgers, Braves, the Rangers. Despite playing major league games at 1B, 2B, 3B, SS, LF, and RF he had most recently tried to convert to pitching with the Braves but was unable to make it stick. Culberson finishes his career with a batting line of .248/.293/.385, and a 77 wRC+.

Culberson was roughed up in a couple appearances this spring after attempting to convert to pitching full-time. It’s unclear whether the 34-year-old will attempt to continue the experiment moving forward.

Seriously, that’s not a typo. Culberson is attempting a late-career reboot as a pitcher after more than a decade as a versatile utility infielder in the big leagues. It’s not unprecedented with Anthony Gose serving as perhaps the best example of this mid-to-late career conversion in recent history. The 34-year-old will head to the minor league side of Braves’ camp this spring. It’s a fascinating wrinkle for a player who has had one of the more unique recent stretches in the majors from a playing time standpoint.

He’s back. Culberson winds up reuniting with the Braves just a few days after electing free agency following his removal from Atlanta’s 40-man roster. The 34-year-old veteran infielder has played slightly more in the majors than the average fan over the last few months, registering just one plate appearance in the big leagues this season.

Culberson has only one at-bat for Atlanta this season. Last year, he hit .252/.282/.357 with two home runs and two steals in 70 games with Texas. The 34-year-old has played for five teams in his 11-year career and will try to latch on somewhere as a defensively versatile bench bat.

Culberson has the ability to elect free agency after going unclaimed on waivers after being designated for assignment earlier this week. His time in Atlanta is over following the club’s acquisition of defensive specialist Nicky Lopez, but he could opt to stick around at Triple-A Gwinnett just in case.

Culberson has registered just one at-bat in the majors this season, despite spending several weeks on Atlanta’s active roster in a pair of stints with the club. He’ll most likely wind up sticking around as extra infield depth, but his role has been virtually eliminated with the club’s addition of defensive wizard Nicky Lopez from the Royals to serve as a reserve infielder.

Culberson was designated for assignment less than two weeks ago, but now he’s back on the major league roster, where he should function in a backup infielder role. The 34-year-old didn’t actually get into a game during his time with the club earlier this season, which is hard to believe. He presumably will this time, maybe.

Culberson elected free agency over the weekend after passing through waivers unclaimed, but has opted to return to the Braves on a new deal. The 34-year-old utility specialist astonishingly spent an entire month in the majors and didn’t end up getting into a single game for Atlanta.

It really shouldn’t come as a surprise that Culberson refused his outright assignment to Triple-A Gwinnett. He spent nearly a month with the Braves and didn’t get into a single ballgame, and was then designated for assignment on Father’s Day -- when his father had been scheduled to throw out the first pitch in Atlanta. He’ll attempt to latch on elsewhere on a minor league pact.