Braves re-sign A.J. Pierzynski to one-year deal

The Braves have agreed to re-sign catcher A.J. Pierzynski to a one-year, $3 million contract, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com and Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The deal is currently pending a physical and includes $1 million in potential incentives.

Pierzynski, 38, will return to Atlanta for a second season after signing a one-year deal with the club last offseason. The veteran was considered likely to return to the Braves as a free agent, though the Twins were also thought to be a possible destination. Minnesota's acquisition of John Ryan Murphy from the Yankees earlier today likely eliminated the Twins from the hunt for Pierzynski, leading him to commit to returning to Atlanta.

Pierzynski will likely split time once again with Christian Bethancourt behind the plate for Atlanta, unless the team decides to change its mind and pursue free-agent catcher Matt Wieters, who went to Georgia Tech and has been linked to the team for a couple months. Sources indicate that Atlanta had interest in Chris Iannetta before signing Pierzynski.

In 113 games for the Braves last season, Pierzynski hit .300/.339/.430 with nine home runs in a much-needed bounceback season after struggling with the Red Sox and Cardinals in 2014. He is a veteran of eighteen major-league seasons with seven different clubs.