Atlanta Braves Sign Former First-Round Pick Pitcher

Joining the Atlanta Braves.

The Braves have signed pitcher Nick Howard to a minor-league contract.

Howard was released from a minor-league deal with the Cincinnati Reds earlier this offseason and has now landed with the Braves.

Last season, at Triple-A Louisville, he posted a brutal 10.80 ERA, 2.93 WHIP, with 14 strikeouts over 13.1 innings of work. He made 14 relief appearances and held an 0-2 record.

The twenty-nine-year-old has yet to make his major-league debut and spent most of last season pitching with the York Revolution of the independent Atlantic League.

For his minor-league career, Howard has compiled a 5.66 ERA, 1.84 WHIP, with 180 strikeouts over 205 innings of work and 157 appearances.

He is a former first-round pick (19th overall) by the Reds in the 2014 MLB Draft.
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