Craig Kimbrel has not allowed a run in two outings for the New York Mets, and that has put a fresh spotlight on how the Braves handled the veteran reliever after bringing him back on a minor league deal in 2025. Atlanta allowed Kimbrel one road outing before parting ways with him, a brief stay that has lingered as a point of frustration.
Kimbrel still leads Atlanta in franchise saves, a reminder of how much weight his name carries in the organization’s history. The Braves' decision to move on last season looked harsher after he later pitched in 13 games for the Houston Astros and gave up only three earned runs, then opened this year with two scoreless outings for the Mets.
The timing matters because Atlanta's bullpen has been good to start the 2026 season, and the club has had more hits than misses with offseason additions such as Raisel Iglesias, Dominic Smith and Mauricio Dubon. That makes the question less about whether the Braves can get by without Kimbrel and more about why they were willing to let a former closer with that track record leave so quickly.
Joel Payamps is the kind of struggling roster spot Kimbrel could have filled, which is why the comparison keeps coming back to Atlanta. The Braves had final two spots to manage, and Kimbrel's latest work with the Mets only sharpens the sense that the 2025 exit was a missed opportunity the franchise would rather not revisit.
