Atlanta Braves: The case for Chad Sobotka

Still looking for bullpen answers?  So are we… and one of those answers might just be emerging from right under our noses.

Looking at the bullpen usage of the Atlanta Braves on most nights, a clear pattern emerges. For some reason, after the starter departs (often after a short start), and the first name out of the bullpen is Luke Jackson or Sam Freeman.

Now, I understand that the season is long, and the same solid players can’t be used over and over. It’s just puzzling to me when these two pitchers are run out in critical game situations when they haven’t proven they can handle it.

One guy who I feel doesn’t get nearly enough buzz in the bullpen is Chad Sobotka. Anyone who watched the first game of the season deciding series vs the Phillies on Thursday saw him pitch the final inning, and he was filthy.

A high 90’s fastball mixed with a high 80’s slider proved far too much for the Phillies hitters, who were struck out in order. An overlay of his fastball and slider from Pitching Ninja on twitter shows what hitters have to face when they step into the box against Sobotka.

On Friday night, Sobotka was given another test – another inning for a second consecutive game.  This was a more critical situation as he was charged with the responsibility of nursing a 2 run lead in the 8th inning.

The result?  Fly out, strike out, line out.  The 2/3/4 hitters in the Philadelphia lineup.

Test passed; extra credit earned.

The Answer?

So why hasn’t Sobotka been given more of a shot? He was called up to the Braves on August 10th, and then was sent back to Gwinnett on the 29th, only to return on September 8th. Across all of that time he has only thrown 11.1 innings, according to MLB.com (plus 3 AAA innings in between).

Over those major league innings, he has a sharp 2.36 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and 16 strikeouts, also according to MLB.com.

For most of the season the Braves bullpen has struggled to find consistent contributors. The aforementioned Jackson and Freeman have struggled mightily in the many high leverage situations they have been put into.

Recently, Jackson’s meltdown vs the Diamondbacks in Arizona nearly cost the Braves a critical game vs a playoff contender on the road. In that game on September 9th Jackson allowed 3 hits, a walk, and 2 earned runs without getting one out. The Braves were in line for the loss before that amazing 9th inning comeback which resulted in the win.

My point is, outside of AJ Minter, the Braves don’t have any true “go to” guys. Sure Brad Brach and Jonny Venters are solid pitchers, but neither has been dazzling in their time in Atlanta.

Arodys Vizcaino has been good in the past, but we will have to wait and see how he does after a few months on the DL.  To this point, he’s been used sparingly with mixed results (3 innings, 2 earned runs).

What I’m trying to get to is that Sobotka should be the bridge to Minter, or at least a high leverage option in important games.

Just from watching Sobotka, his stuff jumps off the screen. I know I’ve said this already, but I can’t emphasize it enough. Watch this clip from Fox Sports South on twitter of the final at bat of the game Thursday to see another reason I believe in his potential.

Over these last days of the regular season, I want to see Sobotka used a lot more. If he continues to flash the stuff that he has had in his audition so far, then there is no doubt in my mind that he should be a key part of the relief core come October.