Peyton Glavine Signs Minor League Deal with Braves, Assigned to Columbus Clingstones

Peyton Glavine, a 26-year-old left-handed pitcher who will turn 27 on March 23, signed a minor-league contract with the Atlanta Braves last week and has been assigned to the organization’s Double-A Columbus club, multiple outlets reported. The move plugs a lefty into Atlanta’s upper-minors depth and carries extra narrative weight: Peyton is the son of Hall of Famer Tom Glavine.

Health and recent workload frame why the assignment matters. MLB.com reported Peyton missed all of 2024 while recovering from shoulder surgery, made three appearances in 2023, and then “posted a 3.64 ERA over 27 appearances for the Nationals’ High-A Wilmington last year.” Tom Glavine told MLB.com, “I still play a lot of catch with him. I think this is the first winter in the last three years where he hasn't said to me, ‘Man, something just doesn't feel right. I'm excited for him.” Tom also said, “He’s proud of what I did. But at the same time, he wants to put himself in a position to experience some of those things himself. So, I think it's been a motivator for him.”

Peyton’s professional résumé includes a career ERA and WHIP that regional reporting summarized differently: Atlanta News First listed a career 3.42 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP across 53 minor-league appearances. He was drafted in the 37th round by the Los Angeles Angels in the 2017 draft but chose to attend Auburn University, then signed with the Washington Nationals as an undrafted free agent out of college. His most recent stop before Atlanta was High-A Wilmington Blue Rocks; several outlets reported the Nationals released him in early January, leaving him unsigned for nearly two months before the new deal.

Details about the assignment carry a few discrepancies in public reports. WSB-TV and a Facebook post from Atlanta Braves Chop Live on 02/20/26 used the nickname “Columbus Clingstones” when announcing the placement, while other outlets simply refer to “Double-A Columbus.” There is also conflicting reporting on spring training status: an original account said Peyton joined the Braves’ spring activities in late February, but Sports Illustrated and Atlanta News First noted there was no indication he had received or was attending a Braves spring-training invite.

The signing is a hometown-return subplot: Sports Illustrated noted Peyton was born in Atlanta, went to high school in Roswell, and now gets to pitch in the system that made his father a star. Fan reaction already appeared online — MLB’s embedded social post captured Peyton pitching the final frame for the Rocks in a blowout — and a Facebook post welcomed him to Columbus on February 20, 2026.

For roster watchers, the immediate takeaway is clarity on role and health. Assigned to Double-A rather than restarting at Low-A or extended spring work, Peyton will have an early chance to demonstrate the shoulder recovery that stalled his climb through the Nationals system and to push toward Triple-A should his command and workload hold up.