The Braves announced that outfielder Eli White has been placed on the paternity list. Fellow outfielder José Azócar has been selected to take his place on the active roster. To open a 40-man spot for Azócar, catcher Jair Camargo has been designated for assignment.

Azócar, 30, signed a minor league deal with Atlanta in the offseason. This is the third time this year he has been added to the roster. The first two were to cover for injuries to other outfielders. In both instances, Azócar was later bumped off the roster. Since he is out of options, he was designated for assignment. He then cleared waivers, elected free agency and re-signed with the club on a new minor league deal.

Around the transactions, Azócar got into nine games and put up a .333/.375/.467 line. Despite that strong showing, Atlanta likely assumed he couldn’t keep it going over a larger timeline. Those numbers were aided by a huge .417 batting average on balls in play in that small sample. Azócar has a less impressive .248/.293/.325 line in his career and is hitting just .243/.295/.343 in Triple-A this year.

Though he shouldn’t be expected to hit like he did with the big league club earlier this year, he can be serviceable in other ways. In 1,109 outfield innings in his career, he has been credited with two Defensive Runs Saved and eight Outs Above Average. Statcast ranks his sprint speed in the 80th percentile this year. He should give the club a speed-and-defense bench outfielder for now. Since he is out of options, it’s possible he is designated for assignment yet again when White returns from the paternity list.

Camargo, 27, also started this year with the club in a non-roster capacity. He had his contract selected last month when Atlanta was playing a doubleheader. Drake Baldwin caught the first game and served as the designated hitter in the second. Sandy León caught the second contest with Camargo on the bench, though Camargo did enter the game and went one for two with a double. He was optioned back to Triple-A the next day and has been there since.

He now heads into DFA limbo, which can last as long as a week. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so Atlanta could take as long as five days for trade talks, though they could also put him on waivers sooner than that if they so choose.

Camargo’s big league track record is quite small. In addition to the one aforementioned game this year, he got into five games with the Twins in 2024. He required Tommy John surgery in 2025 and was released, which allowed Atlanta to sign him. He hasn’t hit much in the minors, with a combined .219/.281/.365 line dating back to the start of 2024, but has a solid defensive reputation.

If he clears waivers, he could stick with the club as non-roster depth. He doesn’t have a previous career outright nor does he have three years of big league service time, so he wouldn’t have the right to elect free agency.

Photo courtesy of Brett Davis, Imagn Images