Is AJ Smith-Shawver Ready for a Return to the Braves?

At this point, it's only a matter of time before the Atlanta Braves activate AJ Smith-Shawver. During Thursday night's rain-shortened game in Gwinnett, he reached a pitch count of 86.

By all modern definitions, he is up to a starting pitcher's workload for a major league outing. The short answer is that he's likely ready.

Before his most recent start, manager Walt Weiss said that there would be discussions. He also highlighted that they'd like to see pitch counts get over 80 before being activated.

We could try to look at other indicators to see if he is truly ready. If he was pitching in the majors during that first inning he had with Gwinnett, maybe not. He needed 34 pitches to escape with one unearned run allowed. One more level of play, and perhaps it gets further out of hand.

After that, he tossed three scoreless innings and averaged about 17 pitches each frame. That pace would have netted him five innings with his current pitch limitations. If you're the Braves, that's likely enough to give him the green light.

Some stats will say Smith-Shawver is ready. Others may say hold your horses. He has a 1.69 ERA. That's fantastic by any definition. He's at over a strikeout per inning. Even better. However, he also owns a 1.50 WHIP. That could be an issue.

He has allowed more than a hit per inning. Walks, for the most part, he's had under control. Against major league hitting, this could backfire.

In another scenario, maybe he gets one more start in Triple-A. He still very well could. But the Braves don't have much of a choice when it comes to being picky about him being ready.

As the rotation currently stands, they have five starters, but they lack innings. While getting six innings has become slightly better to come by lately, that hasn't been the long-term trend.

Even in a best-case scenario, not all five starters can be relied on for more than five innings. Sale and Elder, even on mediocre days, can give more than five innings. Grant Holmes can, but he isn't a guarantee. For Reynaldo López and Martín Pérez, it's rare these days.

The Braves' next off day is Aug 3, which happens to be the trade deadline. By then, other help may come in. Before that, they may need another arm who can step in and help give everyone else in the rotation an extra day of rest.

Sale gets extra rest. Elder has been getting extra rest lately after he, in his words, hit a wall. Holmes and López have recent major injuries. If Smith-Shawver can get a start in for the Braves early next week in New York, they'll take it.

It may be best to conclude that Smith-Shawver is ready, but in two key ways. When it comes to just pitch count, he's ready. Outside of that, given the circumstances, he's likely going to be deemed ready enough.

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