Braves and RHP Craig Kimbrel avoided arbitration by agreeing to a four-year contract extension. The financials of the deal are not yet known, but it also includes a club option for 2018. Kimbrel was arbitration-eligible for the first time this offseason, so the Braves have bought out at least one and possibly two years of free agency. It's the third long-term extension Atlanta has worked out this winter, following the Freddie Freeman and Julio Teheran deals. Kimbrel holds a microscopic 1.39 ERA with 381 strikeouts across 227 1/3 innings in his first four seasons in the majors.