The Atlanta Braves didn’t make a blockbuster deal leading up to the trade deadline, but did upgrade both their bench and bullpen by acquiring Emilio Bonifacio and James Russell from the Cubs.
In exchange for Bonifacio and Russell, the Braves will send Minor League catcher Victor Caratini to the Cubs.
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) July 31, 2014
Bonfiacio is hitting .279/.318/.373 with 14 stolen bases this year, playing second, third, short, and center field for the Cubs. Russell has a 3.51 ERA in 33 1/3 innings to go along with 26 strikeouts and 16 walks, but is oddly holding right-handed hitters to an .098/.243/.121 line this season, and has allowed a whopping one extra base hit to 72 right-handers to step up against him. The platoon split is more traditional over his career, as Russell has allowed a .234/.276/.416 line to lefties overall since 2010.
Caratini was hitting .279/.352/.406 with class-A Rome with five homers. The 20-year old catcher was a second-round pick in the 2013 Draft by Atlanta.
