Atlanta Braves postseason rotation: Touki Toussaint deserves a start
By Fred Owens
Barring an epic collapse, the Atlanta Braves are NL East Champions. They need at least 3 starters – maybe 4 – for the NLDS. Should they win there, they need at least 4 starters for the NLCS; recent results make naming those starters a guessing game.
At this time of year, playoff-bound teams are adjusting their rotations to allow their best starters rest and make sure their best three starters are ready to go on full rest. I’m sure the Atlanta Braves would love to do that but I’m not sure they’ve decided who the starters are.
On Monday Braves’ Manager Brian Snitker told Jeff Schultz what one might have guessed considering the Atlanta Braves looked like anything but title contenders last weekend.
"“I’m concerned with today, and honestly I haven’t looked ahead to see if we need to tweak anything. I feel like we need to worry about today.”"
After winning last Friday, the Braves stumbled through the weekend losing two out of three to the Nationals. The new week saw them continue to struggle, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory and losing the first two against the Cardinals.
That victory created more questions than answers regarding the postseason staff. Games begin with the starter (everywhere outside of Tampa) so we’ll begin by looking at the six names generally considered probable starters: Mike Foltynewicz, Kevin Gausman, Sean Newcomb. Julio Teheran, Aníbal Sánchez, and Touki Toussaint.