The Braves have signed reliever Jim Johnson to a one-year contract, according to a team announcement. He will earn $2.5 million, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman.
Jim Johnson will receive $2.5M with his one-year deal. #Braves
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) November 30, 2015
Johnson is coming off a mixed 2015 season, in which he posted fantastic numbers with the Braves in 48 innings, but faltered after being traded to the Dodgers.
| IP | K/9 | BB/9 | HR/9 | ERA | FIP | xFIP | |
| Braves | 48.0 | 6.19 | 2.63 | 0.38 | 2.25 | 3.24 | 3.68 |
| Dodgers | 18.2 | 8.20 | 2.89 | 1.45 | 10.13 | 5.01 | 3.87 |
Despite the struggles with Los Angeles, Johnson appeared to be incredibly unlucky during his 18.2 innings with the Dodgers. He allowed a BABIP of .446, which is .143 points higher than his career average. Fortunately for Johnson and the Braves, it's highly unlikely that he'll post a BABIP anywhere near that value in 2016, and he should be an above average reliever once again.
The biggest question that remains is how long Johnson will remain on the Braves. If he can prove to be valuable this upcoming season, it's hard to imagine them not trading him again. While it would undoubtedly be strange to see Johnson traded by the Braves in back-to-back seasons, they likely won't have a need for a shutdown reliever by the time the July deadline comes up.
Johnson wouldn't be able to bring back a top tier prospect by himself, but he could net a mid-level prospect, or the Braves could attach him with another player to increase the overall value on the return. It's unclear how Atlanta plans to use Johnson out of the bullpen, but a set-up role would seem likely. Arodys Vizcaino proved to be extremely effective out of the closer role in limited action, and the Braves might prefer to keep him there.