Tyler Kinley: Everything you need to know

Kinley (1-0) picked up the win Tuesday, allowing one hit and striking out two over a scoreless two-thirds of an inning in a victory over the Angels. Reynaldo Lopez got ejected with two outs in the fifth inning and Atlanta ahead 4-2 at the time, failing to qualify for the win as a result, so Kinley was credited with the decision as the next man out of the bullpen. Kinley has had a strong start to the season, posting a 0.00 ERA, 0.64 WHIP and 5:1 K:BB through 4.2 innings over five appearances, but he's still looking for his first hold as part of the bridge to the high-leverage duo of Raisel Iglesias and Robert Suarez.

Kinley will begin the season as part of Atlanta's bullpen, Chad Bishop of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. No surprise here after Kinley posted a 0.72 ERA, 0.68 WHIP and 22:6 K:BB over 25 innings for Atlanta last season following his trade from the Rockies, and then re-signed with the NL East squad on a one-year, $4.5 million deal this offseason. Raisel Iglesias and Robert Suarez will be the top right-handed high-leverage arms for Atlanta, but Kinley could still post strong a strong holds total as one of the primary options for the seventh inning -- his career high in holds is 15, set in 2024 for Colorado.

Kinley signed a one-year, $4.25 million contract with Atlanta on Saturday, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports. Atlanta declined Kinley's $5.5 million club option for 2026 earlier in the offseason, but the team will now bring the 34-year-old reliever back on a more team-friendly deal that also includes a club option for 2027. Kinley owned a 5.66 ERA and 1.45 WHIP through 47.2 innings when the Rockies shipped him to Atlanta at the trade deadline, at which point the right-hander flipped a switch and posted a 0.72 ERA and 0.68 WHIP across his final 25 frames. He'll likely face a healthy amount of competition for high-leverage opportunities in Atlanta, but his recent body of work should keep him in the mix heading into the new season.