Veteran left-hander Wandy Rodriguez has agreed to a minor league deal with the Atlanta Braves after failing a physical with the Philadelphia Phillies. Rodriguez will be competing for the Braves fifth starter’s spot in the rotation.

With this being a minor league deal there isn’t guaranteed money unless he makes the club out of Spring Training. If he wins the spot he will earn a base salary of $2 million.

Atlanta is bringing in several veterans in to compete for the last spot in what is otherwise a very young rotation. The list of names so far is Rodriguez, Manny Banuelos, David Hale, and Chien-Ming Wang. We're sure the Braves will continue to survey the market for other established veterans who will come in and compete in Spring Training.

Rodriguez has struggled not only on the mound but also the ability to stay healthy. In the past two seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates he’s made only 18 starts. In those starts he’s gone 6-6 with a 4.53 ERA. Two years ago he suffered an elbow injury and last season he battled with inflammation in this right knee that led to the Pirates designating him for assignment.

Before these injuries Rodriguez had been a reliable starter going four straight seasons with 30 or more starts and over 190 innings pitched. Combining his age, injuries, and ineffectiveness in recent years you wonder how much value Rodriguez could give the Braves. However, this was the same team that took a flyer on Aaron Harang and he proved to be very reliable the entire 2014 season.

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About the author
Parker White
Sports journalist from Midlothian, Virginia. Co-editor and writer for the NBA and MLB sections at VAVEL USA. Follow me on Twitter @spudwhite1022