Braves option Hayden Harris; reassign Carlos Carrasco, James Karinchak, Elieser Hernandez

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NORTH PORT, FL - MARCH 09: Atlanta Braves pitcher Hayden Harris (79) throws a pitch against the Minnesota Twins on March 9, 2026, at CoolToday Park at North Port, Florida. (Photo by Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Earlier this afternoon, the Atlanta Braves optioned reliever Hayden Harris to Triple-A and reassigned starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco and relievers Elieser Hernández and James Karinchak to their minor league camp.

Harris is a mild surprise given his stand-out performance this Spring, having struck out 12 batters in five innings. His ability to be optioned – combined with Atlanta starting the season with 13 consecutive games – made his fit on the Opening Day roster a tight one barring a roster move with other relievers. Much like his 2025 minor league performance, he put himself in the position to make the team, soomething that could still happen with two weeks left until the start of the regular season.

Karinchak, the former Cleveland reliever, has also pitched well in camp as he tries to return to the big leagues for the first time since 2023 due to injuries. He has struck out nine across four innings pitched.

Mark Bowman of MLB.com believes that Karinchak will likely be with Atlanta by early April, citing the schedule as a factor in why the Braves would opt for a multi-inning reliever during the season’s first few weeks.

Here’s some clarity to yesterday’s Karinchak vs. Suarez debate. Playing 13 straight days to open the season creates reason to carry a long relief option, especially if you want to give your top starters an extra day of rest those first two weeks. Karinchak will be up soon enough.… https://t.co/dBgY81deys

— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) March 11, 2026

Carrasco, who made his MLB debut back in 2009, made three starts with Atlanta last year and returned on a minor league deal despite his struggles in 2025. Hernandez is another veteran pitcher, who has 99 games of big league experience, but didn’t pitch in the majors last season.

The moves bring the current camp roster to 50 players.

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