The Atlanta Braves have avoided arbitration with Paul Janish, signing the back-up shortstop to a one-year contract worth nearly $1 million, reports David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

The Braves quietly avoided arbitration with backup infielder Paul Janish, signing the veteran earlier in the offseason to a one-year contract believed to be worth a little less than $1 million...

He had surgery on his left (non-throwing) shoulder soon after their loss to St. Louis in the NL wild card game, and is expected to be return in April.

Janish was picked up in a trade by the Braves in mid-July after Andrelton Simmons went down with a broken hand. The 30-year-old manned shortstop for Atlanta almost exclusively until Simmons returned in September -- keeping Opening Day starter Tyler Pastornicky in the minors -- appearing in 55 games for the club.

Janish did not have much success offensively, hitting .186/.269/.234 with no home runs in 186 plate appearances, but he did put up a stellar Total Zone rating of 11 in his brief stint at short.