Braves Add Gaus to Sputtering Rotation
For as pitching-rich as the Braves may be, they could not afford to stand pat at the non-waiver trade deadline, particularly given the recent struggles of their rotation, the uncharted territory towards which their top starters are heading innings-wise, and a 31-games-in-31-days stretch that has only just begun. On Tuesday afternoon, they dealt four prospects and $2.5 million in international signing bonus slot money to the Orioles in exchange for 27-year-old righty starter Kevin Gausman and 35-year-old righty reliever Darren O’Day It’s the second deal in three days between the two teams, following Atlanta’s acquisition of 32-year-old righty reliever Brad Brach, also in exchange for slot money.
At 56-47, the Braves entered Tuesday half a game back in both the NL East (behind the Phillies) and the Wild Card races (behind the D-backs, .001 ahead of the Rockies). They’ve generally gotten good work from their starters this year, at least in terms of ERA, as the rotation ranks third in the NL (3.68). They’re a shakier eighth in FIP (4.19), with a gaudy 9.8% walk rate, the league’s second-worst. The team’s 9-13 record this month owes plenty to the unit’s recent struggles; their 4.90 ERA and 4.95 FIP in July both rank in the bottom third of the league.
All of that has been a problem, but if the Braves stay In This Thing, they’ll have another:
Pitcher | GS | IP | ERA | FIP | WAR | 2018 IP | 2017 IP |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kevin Gausman | 21 | 124.0 | 4.43 | 4.58 | 1.3 | 124.0 | 186.2 |
Sean Newcomb | 21 | 119.2 | 3.23 | 4.05 | 1.5 | 119.2 | 157.2 |
Julio Teheran | 21 | 115.0 | 4.46 | 5.33 | -0.1 | 115.0 | 188.1 |
Mike Foltynewicz | 20 | 112.1 | 3.04 | 3.54 | 2.2 | 112.1 | 154.0 |
Brandon McCarthy* | 15 | 78.2 | 4.92 | 4.79 | 0.2 | 78.2 | 100.1 |
Anibal Sanchez | 13 | 75.0 | 3.12 | 3.93 | 1.0 | 81.2 | 125.0 |
Michael Soroka* | 5 | 25.2 | 3.51 | 2.85 | 0.6 | 66.1 | 153.2 |
Max Fried | 4 | 19.2 | 2.75 | 2.91 | 0.5 | 80.0 | 144.2 |
Matt Wisler | 3 | 17.1 | 3.63 | 4.03 | 0.2 | 96.2 | 126.0 |
Luiz Gohara | 1 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 3.16 | 0.1 | 68.1 | 153.0 |
2017 and 2018 innings totals include all roles and all leagues for regular season and postseason.