"He's a guy we liked from the very start," Braves general manager John Coppolella said. "We have some history with him in Cuba through our foreign scouting, and we had some familiarity with him with our scouts."
To create a 40-man roster spot in order to make this selection, the Braves released right-handed pitcher Williams Perez just before the start of the Rule 5 Draft. Perez showed some promise while occasionally filling a spot in Atlanta's rotation over his past two injury-marred seasons, but his value within Atlanta's system has been adversely affected by this offseason's activity (additions of Bartolo Colon, R.