ATLANTA -- Tuffy Gosewisch is not the caliber of catcher the Braves were talking about when they said they would spend a portion of this offseason looking for somebody to pair with Tyler Flowers. But Gosewisch does provide Atlanta's organization some necessary depth at the catching position.
Gosewisch was claimed off waivers from the D-backs on Nov. 18. On Wednesday, he and the Braves avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal. Financial details were not immediately revealed.
The Braves now have six unsigned arbitration-eligible players -- center fielder Ender Inciarte, left-handed reliever Ian Krol, right-handed reliever Arodys Vizcaíno, right-handed reliever Chris Withrow, left-handed reliever Paco Rodríguez and catcher Anthony Recker. Withrow, Rodriguez and Recker appear to be the only members of this group potentially in danger of being non-tendered before Friday's 11:59 p.m. ET deadline.
Though the Braves are still evaluating the possibility of adding a catcher, the current plan is to enter the season with either Recker or Gosewisch serving as Flowers' backup. The player who does not get this role will begin the season with Triple-A Gwinnett.
Gosewisch has batted .199 with a .522 OPS in 416 career plate appearances with the D-backs over the past four seasons. The 33-year-old hit three home runs while totaling 99 plate appearances with Arizona last season.