Braves rumors: Atlanta willing to listen on Jonny Venters

There is talk among scouts that the Atlanta Braves are willing to listen to offers for left-handed reliever Jonny Venters, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

While there are rumors of a potential Venter's trade in scout's circles, the Braves tell Rosenthal that they "love" their current bullpen depth, including their three left-handed relievers. Beyond Venters, Atlanta also has southpaws Eric O'Flaherty and Luis Avilan available out of the ‘pen.

Venters has spent the past three seasons with the Braves after making his major league debut in 2010. Over his first two years, the left-hander appeared in 164 games and maintained an ERA of 1.89. But he was hit hard last season, as his ERA rose to 3.22.

Despite his struggles in 2012, Venters still owns a career ERA of 2.23 with a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 2.35. When he's on, he's an effective late-inning reliever, as he has collected 79 holds during his time in the bigs. The 27-year-old is under team control through 2016, and he's set to make $1.63 million this season.

If the Braves do trade Venters, they could seek a left-handed-hitting bench bat in return. Buster Olney of ESPN reported earlier this month that Atlanta's been on the lookout for such a player.