Braves Talk - Rotation taking shape
Mike Soroka looked like Mike Soroka. He's a special pitcher. We all knew that, and by watching the boring scrimmage Monday night we simply saw it again.
His teammates didn't really get good swings off him. Only four singles - two each by Ronald Acuna, Jr. and Ozzie Albes - were the damage. Soroka was in control, like he seemingly always is on the mound in any type of baseball game.
Max Fried will obviously be next in the Atlanta rotation, followed by Mike Foltynewicz and then Sean Newcomb.
And then what? With questions surrounding the health and timetable of Cole Hamels, there is uncertainty over the last spot in the rotation. All of a sudden, the depth we thought was on the depth chart has thinned out a bit, with Felix Hernandez opting out and Hamels not being ready to go.
Kyle Wright needs to step up. Maybe Bryse Wilson. Maybe Tucker Davidson. If not, veteran Josh Tomlin, who pitched Monday night, could be that other starting pitcher.
Touki Toussaint was pitching so well in spring training, and obviously, he's out with the virus. So someone else has simply got to emerge as another option, or the Braves bullpen, weakened also with the loss of Will Smith to COVID-19, might be even more important than we once believe.
Listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays at 3:00 p.m. ET on Middle Georgia’s ESPN. You can listen online at TheSuperStations.com. Follow Bill on Twitter at @billshanks and you can email him at thebillshanksshow@yahoo.com.