Friday, December 05

BOSTON -- A few weeks ago it felt like the Braves had multiple holes within their rotation. That feeling certainly didn’t exist on Friday, when Bryce Elder was optioned, despite having posted a 3.10 ERA over his past five starts.

“He got it and handled it like a pro,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “Those conversations are never fun, even though they know what’s going on, knowing somebody has to go with Spencer [Strider] coming back.”

The Braves weren’t going to option AJ Smith-Shawver, who has a 1.08 ERA over his past four starts, and they couldn’t option Grant Holmes because he is out of options. Could they have moved Holmes to the bullpen? Sure. But why would you do that when he has pitched into the sixth inning in seven straight starts?

There was also the option of having Strider make a rehab start before being activated from the injured list to start Tuesday at Nationals Park. But the Braves saw enough during Wednesday's sim game to believe he is ready to make what will be just his second start in more than a year. 

The Braves are in a good spot as they prepare to add Strider’s potential excellence to a rotation that has posted an incredible 1.97 ERA over 15 games going back to May 4. Atlanta ranks third in starters’ ERA (2.70) and first in starters’ innings (103 1/3) this month.

This has been quite a turnaround.  As the second half of April unraveled, Chris Sale was struggling and Strider was heading toward his second stint on the injured list. Spencer Schwellenbach was nearing what amounted to a speed bump and Smith-Shawver was aiming to get back to the Majors.

But ...

Sale has a 1.72 ERA over the five starts he has made going back to April 25. The 40 strikeouts he has tallied during this stretch ranks second only to Detroit’s Tarik Skubal. Sound familiar? Yeah, the Braves lefty is pitching like he did last year, when Skubal’s strikeout total was the only thing that separated Sale from being the first pitcher to win MLB’s Triple Crown during a 162-game season since Johan Santana in 2006.

Smith-Shawver has allowed three earned runs over the 25 innings he has totaled in the four starts he has made since returning from Triple-A. Opponents have hit just .141. This ranks first among MLB pitchers who have completed at least 20 innings since April 29.

Schwellenbach posted a 7.17 ERA and allowed opponents to produce a .903 OPS during a four-start stretch from April 15-May 3. But he has further enhanced excitement about his potential by quickly bouncing back from the first rough patch of his young career. He has allowed just six earned runs and 14 hits over his past three starts (20 innings), winning his previous two decisions. He surrendered a Rafael Devers grand slam in the third inning on Sunday and didn’t allow any other runs during his seven-inning effort.

Now, the Braves will patiently wait to see how long it takes for Strider to find a groove and possibly reintroduce himself to the dominant form he had in 2022 and ’23. 

Strider’s four-seam fastball averaged 97.2 mph in 2023, his most recent healthy season. Just 0.3 percent (6-of-1,826) of the four-seamers he threw registered at 94 mph or lower.

So, yeah, there was reason to notice when he sat around 94 mph while throwing 65 pitches in Wednesday’s sim game. Was he holding back? Does he just need some time to build arm strength? Is this where he’s going to be until he further distances himself from last year’s elbow surgery? 

We’ll find out over the next few weeks and months, as he takes advantage of the chance to strengthen what has already been one of the game’s top rotations.

Ronald Acuña Jr.'s 12 homers at Nationals Park are tied for the most hit by a Braves player. Who does he share this mark with?

A. Freddie Freeman

B. Dansby Swanson

C. Ozzie Albies

D. Martín Prado

Acuña played three straight days for Triple-A Gwinnett and then rested on Sunday. The Braves haven’t announced what his next step will be. But the expectation is he will be activated by the time Atlanta opens a series against the Padres on Friday. 

Once Acuña returns to be the everyday right fielder, the Braves could platoon Eli White and Alex Verdugo in left field. But this doesn’t make sense given White would get fewer at-bats while serving as the right-handed portion of this platoon. 

Verdugo has hit .228 (16-for-70) over the 18 games played since his four-hit performance against Arizona on April 27. White is the better option offensively and defensively. So, it would seemingly make more sense for him to be the everyday left fielder once Acuña is back.

There’s a chance Acuña will return this week and Strider could start Sunday against the Padres. You can buy tickets here.

The baseball gods had some more fun on Saturday night. As Rafael Montero was proving he shouldn’t be used in high-leverage situations, even when Raisel Iglesias, Daysbel Hernández and Dylan Lee are all unavailable, Craig Kimbrel was producing a season-high 94.4 mph average velocity with his four-seamer for Triple-A Gwinnett.

Making this more encouraging was the fact Kimbrel was pitching on consecutive nights for just the second time this season. The veteran reliever hasn’t allowed an earned run over his past seven appearances, and he hasn’t issued a walk in his past four appearances.

Kimbrel doesn’t have the dominant stuff he had during his first stint with Atlanta. But he certainly could be a better option than Montero, who has shown why the Astros were willing to eat $8 million of his $11 million salary when sending him to the Braves last month.

B. Swanson

Swanson also hit 12 homers at the Nats’ home park, including the first of his career, an inside-the-park homer on Sept. 6, 2016.  

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