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Braves GM says there's 'no risk' in signing Tim Tebow

Israel Fehr

There’s at least one major-league team that thinks signing Tim Tebow to a professional baseball contract is a good idea: the Atlanta Braves.

Braves general manager John Coppolella spoke to the “no risk” nature of bring Tebow aboard, citing multiple factors to help prove his point.

From MLB.com:

“Whatever Tim decides, the fact that he wants to play baseball is good for the game,” Braves general manager John Coppolella said. “It’s similar to when Michael Jordan or others have wanted to play. It’s positive to draw this kind of interest to the game and make it a story because it’s good for baseball.”

“There’s no risk,” Coppolella said. “If it doesn’t work, we’ll be honest with Tim early, and we can move on. If it does work, it’s great for the Braves and it’s great for baseball.”

It appears the plan would be to have Tebow sign as soon as possible so he can be assigned to the instructional league, which begins Sept. 17. From there he could go play winter ball, say in a country like Venezuela where he’s already reportedly received an offer, or he could continue training in the U.S. to prepare for the 2017 season.

It sounds like Tebow would start the year with Double-A Mississippi and would not get an invitation to spring training, even as a non-roster player. That way he wouldn’t be blocking any of Atlanta’s top prospects, who need more time in the lower levels of the minors, and still be given an opportunity to show what he can do as an outfielder and at the plate. Like Coppolella said, it likely won’t take long to find out if there’s something there.

The Braves were said to be among the teams intrigued by Tebow’s potential after sending two scouts to his workout in late August. There would also be some ancillary business benefits for a deal between the two, as Tebow remains popular in the southeast thanks to his football exploits while at the University of Florida.

The odds look good that Tebow will sign somewhere and that somewhere being with the Atlanta Braves looks pretty good right now.

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Israel Fehr is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at israelfehr@yahoo.ca or follow him on Twitter.