Atlanta Braves: Newcomb, Sims nearly perfect vs. Phillies
It lasted just seven innings, but this kind of pitching is definitely unusual for a Spring training contest.
The Atlanta Braves lost tonight to the Phillies at Disney World’s Champion Stadium, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t an especially encouraging game for the home team.
Sean Newcomb and Lucas Sims combined on a 7-inning non-no tonight, allowing just 2 baserunners (a walk and a hit batsman – both from Sims).
Newcomb seems to have found a confidence that he has lacked over his short career, and just the knowledge that he needs to attack and control the strike zone appears to have been the message he needed. He’s always had the ‘stuff’ – but whether it’s been confidence, command, or merely the ability to forget about ‘the last batter’, he is clearly firing on all cylinders this Spring.
Tonight it was 6 strikeouts against no walks. He’s now looking at a 2.53 ERA for the Spring with a dozen K’s and just 2 walks – dropping his WHIP to 0.56 over 10-2/3rds innings.
Lucas Sims needed a good outing himself – and got one. Among the Braves’ starters, he had the worst ERA – 9.00, though that was over just 5 innings. Tonight’s effort (2.1 innings) drops this to 6.14, though he kept the walks in check – adding just the 1 to give him 5 on the Spring against 5K (2 tonight) in 7.1 innings.
Give Dan Winkler a star as well: 1 inning (the 9th inning) for him with a walk and 2 punchouts. He sorely needed that performance as well: his Spring ERA in just 2.2 innings had been over 10.
Not Everyone Prospered
The reason the Braves lost tonight? There’s two reasons: (a) failing to score against Zach Eflin and his stable mates; (b) Arodys Vizcaino.
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Vizzy had a stretch in late June through July last season in which he suddenly struggled to get anybody out. Tonight it was 3 earned runs by giving up 2 hits and a blast to give Philly their only hits … and runs.
So Atlanta fell 3-0, but you’ve got to be encouraged by Newcomb’s work… very well done.
For the record, this was a ‘road version’ of the Phillies (no Hoskins, no Santana), but their lineup did feature their up-the-middle starters in Odubel Herrera, J.P. Crawford, Cesar Hernandez, and Jorge Alfaro catching Eflin.
Tomorrow it’s the Blue Jays – an afternoon affair back at Disney.
The strikezone is getting sufficiently pounded, and after seeing Matt Wisler struggle on Sunday, it was good to see Newcomb take care of business tonight.