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Alden Gonzalez, ESPN Staff Writer
The Atlanta Braves acquired veteran left-handed reliever Brad Hand from the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday, hours before the trade deadline, the team announced.
Alec Barger, a 25-year-old reliever pitching in Double-A, is going to the Rockies.
Hand, 33, had a 4.54 ERA in 40 appearances out of the Rockies’ bullpen, striking out 41 and walking 16 in 35⅔ innings, but he has held opposing left-handed hitters to a .143/.276/.204 slash line.
Hand is making $4 million this season and carries a $7 million club option for 2024. On the first-place Braves — the team he faced in the National League Division Series last season, while pitching for the Philadelphia Phillies — he’ll slot into a deep bullpen featuring Raisel Iglesias, Joe Jimenez, Kirby Yates and fellow lefty A.J. Minter.
The Braves will mark Hand’s ninth team, and his sixth since the 2020 season.
His acquisition comes a little over a week after the Braves landed another reliever, Pierce Johnson, from the Rockies. The Rockies have also traded Mike Moustakas, C.J. Cron and Randal Grichuk off their team this summer, with more expected to follow.