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Sean Newcomb

Braves Option Orlando Arcia, Sean Newcomb

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Deadline acquisitions Richard Rodriguez and Jorge Soler are in Atlanta and active for tonight’s ballgame, per the team. To make room for their arrival, Orlando Arcia and Sean Newcomb have been optioned to Triple-A.

Arcia came over from the Brewers midseason and had mostly played left field for the Braves — his first outfield appearances in the Majors save for one game in center last season. Arcia doesn’t carry enough bat to hold down the position long-term, however, and the Braves added Soler, Eddie Rosario, and Adam Duvall to go along with Joc Pederson in the outfield corners. Arcia hit just .204/.264/.347 in 53 appearances with the Braves.

Newcomb has been up and down this season. Despite a 5.68 ERA, however, he has a 3.79 FIP in 25 1/3 innings in the Majors with a career-best 27.3 percent strikeout rate and career-worst 17.4 percent walk rate. Because Newcomb has already been optioned this season, he’s an obvious candidate for the demotion here, with only Edgar Santana as the only other real option from the Braves’ veteran bullpen.

Rodriguez saved 14 games for the Pirates this season, but he was acquired to step into a setup role in Atlanta. That’s a role Rodriguez is familiar with, as he had just five career saves coming into this season.

Soler’s usage, too, will be an issue worth monitoring in Atlanta. The slugger doesn’t offer much with the glove and therefore fits awkwardly as an everyday player on a National League club. He has struggled mightily at the plate as well this season, slashing just .192/.288/.370. That said, he is just two years removed from leading the American League with 48 home runs in 2019.

Braves Reinstate Max Fried, Option Sean Newcomb

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The Braves have reinstated Max Fried from the injured list and optioned Sean Newcomb to Triple-A, the team announced.

It’s been a season of false starts so far for Fried, whose has twice been on the injured list, once with a hamstring strain and more recently with a blister. Nevertheless, he’s managed to make 11 starts, pitching to a 4.21 ERA/3.89 FIP across 57 2/3 innings. The Braves’ rotation has been a strength, tying for the Majors’ lead in fWAR this month with 3.1 fWAR.

He will not, unfortunately, help the offense. In the past month, the Braves’ bats rank 20th with a 95 wRC+. Despite their struggles the Braves are just 5 1/2 games behind the Mets in the NL East. With Fried alongside Charlie Morton, Drew Smyly, Kyle Muller, and Ian Anderson, the rotation will look to lead the Braves until their offense finds its way.

As for Newcomb, the 28-year-old hasn’t had the bottom line results he desires with a 5.82 ERA in 21 2/3 innings, though a 3.98 FIP suggests there could be smoother sailing ahead. Fact is, Newcomb needs to find his command after posting a far-too-high 18.5 percent walk rate.

Braves Activate Sean Newcomb, Transfer Mike Soroka To 60-Day IL

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The Braves announced this morning that lefty Sean Newcomb has been reinstated from the Covid-19 injured list. To open a spot on the 40-man roster, righty Mike Soroka was transferred to the 60-day injured list. Atlanta also recalled righty Edgar Santana and optioned both Bryse Wilson and Johan Camargo to their alternate site.

The Soroka portion of the announcement may cause some alarm among fans, but that 60-day term refers to the total number of days he must spend on the injured list — including days already spent there. In other words, it’s 60 days from his initial placement on Opening Day — not 60 days from today. Soroka will be eligible to return at the end of May, but the latest reports out of Atlanta suggest he’s not likely to be ready to return to the roster until mid-June anyhow. It’s a largely procedural move.

Newcomb, 27, got out to a fast start this season but has been sidelined since being placed on the Covid list back on April 17. The starter-turned-reliever has pitched 5 1/3 innings and allowed just one run while striking out a whopping 12 of the 22 hitters he’s faced. Granted, he’s also walked four batters and hit another, but the early uptick in strikeout rate, average fastball velocity (95.2 mph, up from 93.6 mph in 2020) and swinging-strike rate (14 percent, up from seven percent in 2020) are intriguing small-sample things for Braves fans to keep an eye on.

The 23-year-old Wilson started last night’s game, so he’ll head down to the alternate site as a means of getting some fresh arms into the ’pen. Santana will be making his club debut when he first gets into a game. The former Pirates righty missed the 2019 season due to an elbow injury that eventually required Tommy John surgery. He didn’t make it back to the big leagues in 2020 due to that surgery and an 80-game PED suspension. The Braves picked him up earlier this month in exchange for cash. Prior to surgery, he sat 95 mph with his heater and carried a career 3.31 ERA with a sub-par 21 percent strikeout rate but a 6.8 percent walk rate that was much better than the league average.

Braves Make Series Of Roster Moves

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The Braves announced a series of roster moves in advance of this afternoon’s game against the Cubs. Atlanta selected the contracts of infielder Sean Kazmar Jr. and left-hander Jesse Biddle, recalled righty Bryse Wilson and placed outfielder Ender Inciarte and southpaw Sean Newcomb on the injured list. Righty Kyle Wright was optioned to the alternate training site last night. (ESPN’s Jeff Passan had previously reported Kazmar’s impending call-up).

Kazmar’s return to the big leagues is nothing short of remarkable. A 36-year-old infielder, his entire MLB experience to date consists of 19 games with the 2008 Padres. Kazmar has since bounced between the San Diego, Seattle, Mets and Atlanta farm systems. He has spent the past eight years in the high minors with the Braves, and his determination to return to the big leagues will now pay off. Andrew Simon of MLB.com provided the starting lineups (via Twitter) of the last MLB game in which Kazmar appeared.

Biddle signed a minor-league deal with Atlanta earlier this month. The 29-year-old southpaw has pitched in the big leagues in each of the past three years, with the bulk of that time coming in 2018 with Atlanta. The former top prospect has a 4.68 ERA with subpar strikeout and walk rates (22.3% and 12.8%, respectively) over 92.1 innings at the highest level. He’ll replace Newcomb, who was placed on the injured list for undisclosed reasons.

Inciarte, meanwhile, went on the 10-day IL as expected. He strained a hamstring in last night’s game. With both Inciarte and Cristian Pache now on the shelf, Atlanta will turn to Guillermo Heredia in center field this afternoon.

Quick Hits: Twins, Braves, Dodgers

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Josh Donaldson ran the bases well enough progress to the next portion of his rehab, suggesting a return to the Twins as early as Monday or Tuesday, per Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com (via Twitter). When Donaldson does return, he’ll put his perfect season on the line. He doubled in his only plate appearance of the season before straining his hamstring. Luis Arraez, however, has maintained the potency of the hot corner while Donaldson’s been away. Arraez has slashed .381/.462/.571 while starting six of the seven games since the injury. Willians Astudillo started on Arraez’s day off, going 0-2 while driving in a run with a sac fly. Elsewhere…

  • Braves setup man Chris Martin will be eligible to come off the injured list on April 17th, but manager Brian Snitker doesn’t think it will be that simple, per Mark Bowman of MLB.com (via Twitter). Martin’s shoulder only recently became an area of concern. Still, Martin is looking at a longer-than-minimal stay on the injured list. In the meantime, Sean Newcomb and Jacob Webb will have the opportunity to raise their stock in the Atlanta pen, per the Athletic’s David O’Brien (via Twitter). Webb from the right side and Newcomb from the left will try to soak up some of Martin’s setup duties.
  • Brusdar Graterol is readying to make his season debut. Per Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter), Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, “Everything looked good, so we’re trying to figure out the next step. We’re hoping to get him back soon. Just hesitant to put a day on it.” Graterol got a late start in preparing for the season, leaving Blake Treinen, Corey Knebel, and Kenley Jansen as the late-game righties available to Roberts. The Dodgers have high hopes that the 22-year-old Graterol can be weaponized either as a traditional setup man or as a multi-inning option out of the pen.

COVID Notes: 3/6/21

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The latest on how the coronavirus is affecting Major League Baseball:

  • Max Fried has been cleared to return to spring training, per MLB.com’s Mark Bowman. Fried had to go through additional protocols after being in close contact to a potential COVID-19 exposure. Having received the necessary number of negative tests, Fried can return to camp and get set to make his spring debut. As of right now, the expectation is that Fried will be ready for the start of the season. Fellow southpaw Sean Newcomb now faces a similar situation, however. He will step away from camp until being officially cleared, as was the case with Fried.

Braves Announce Starters For First Three Games Of NLDS

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OCTOBER 5: As expected, the Braves announced that Fried will get the ball in Game 1, with Anderson and Wright tabbed for Games 2 and 3, respectively (via David O’Brien of the Athletic). Manager Brian Snitker suggested the club could carry fifteen pitchers on their NLDS roster (relays O’Brien). Atlanta only activated thirteen pitchers for their shorter first-round series against the Reds.

OCTOBER 4: The Braves will consider a bullpen game at some point during their NLDS series against the Marlins, per MLB.com’s Mark Bowman. That’s a lot to put on a bullpen in a 5-game series that takes place over 5 days, but the Braves and manager Brian Snitker may not have a better option available to them.

Max Fried figures to get the start in game one, with Snitker announcing the move in all but name: “I think you want your best going in Game 1,” said Snitker, per Bowman. Fried could return on short rest to start a potential win-or-go-home game five. Said Snitker, “…I definitely think that is a possibility. We just need to see how that first game goes and the subsequent games as well.” Snitker remained coy about officially naming Fried as the game one starter, but only an injury would derail a game one start from Fried at this point, and it seems their ace lefty is finally healthy for the first time in that past month.

Beyond Fried, rookie standout Ian Anderson should line up for game two and Kyle Wright for game three. Again, Snitker would make nothing official, but the Braves don’t have a lot of options given the injuries that befell their rotation during the season.

Game four is where things get interesting for the Braves, as they don’t have a clear option lined up to start this game – hence the possibility of a bullpen game. Josh Tomlin was on the Wild Card roster, and he could function as a key swingman after making 5 starts during the regular season. Tomlin covered 39 2/3 innings across 17 total appearances during the regular season with a 4.76 ERA/4.02 FIP and 8.17 K/9 to 1.82 BB/9.

Atlanta went with a 10-man bullpen for the wild card series, with Tomlin as the only true long man. If they should so choose, the Braves have a number of options elsewhere in the system with experience eating innings. Huascar Ynoa, Bryse Wilson, Touki Toussaint, and Sean Newcomb could conceivably be added to their pitching pool as options to start or eat innings in a potential game four. That said, 10 guys in the pen should be enough even with a bullpen game, and the Braves already expect to lean heavily on Mark Melancon and Shane Greene – each of whom could theoretically pitch in as many as four of the five games, if it goes the distance.

Braves Option Sean Newcomb

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The Braves optioned lefty Sean Newcomb back to their alternate training site just two days after recalling him, per a club announcement. His roster spot goes to Touki Toussaint, who is up from the alternate site to start tonight’s game against the Orioles.

It seems increasingly likely that the 27-year-old Newcomb isn’t in the team’s plans for the remainder of this season. The southpaw was clobbered for 17 runs in just 13 2/3 innings across four starts earlier this season and sent to the alternate site to try to right the ship. He didn’t get into a game in his most recent return to the roster, however, and Newcomb will now be required to spend 10 days at the alternate site unless he’s recalled to replace a teammate who is being placed on the injured list. That minimum optional assignment will take him nearly through season’s end.

Just two years ago, Newcomb looked to have established himself as a mainstay on the Braves’ staff. He followed a respectable rookie showing in 2017 with 164 frames of 3.90 ERA ball and nearly a strikeout per inning in 2018. The Braves moved him to the bullpen in 2019 after some early struggles as a starter, and he responded to that role quite well, posting a 3.04 ERA with 9.6 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 through 51 outings.

With Newcomb headed back to the team’s alternate site now, it’s fair to question whether he’ll pitch for the team again in 2020. At this point, it looks like he’ll fall a bit shy of reaching three years of service time, which he’d need to reach arbitration eligibility. While Newcomb would technically have the service time needed to qualify as a Super Two player, that status also requires a player to have spent 86 days on the active roster or injured list in a conventional season. That comes out to a prorated 31 days in this year’s shortened schedule, but Newcomb was optioned out less than three weeks into the season and only picked up two additional days of service in this most recent stint.

If he indeed remains in pre-arbitration status, then perhaps the Braves will keep him around and hope for better results next year. There’d be little harm in doing so, and Newcomb will have a minor league option remaining even after being optioned in 2020. That said, his standing within the organization certainly looks to have tumbled over the past couple seasons as he’s been leapfrogged by several younger arms. He’ll likely have to earn his way back into the mix next spring, and it’s not hard to imagine other clubs inquiring on the former top prospect as a change of scenery candidate this winter.

Braves Designate Robbie Erlin, Recall Sean Newcomb

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The Atlanta Braves have designated starter Robbie Erlin for assignment, per the team. Sean Newcomb has been added to the active roster to take his place.

Erlin’s tenure in Atlanta was short, in the grand scheme of things. He made 7 appearances, 5 starts, for a 8.49 ERA/6.75 FIP while allowing 8 home runs over 23 1/3 innings. The Braves have been desperate for rotation help, claiming Erlin off waivers from the Pirates on August 7th.

Newcomb made his debut as a starter for the Braves in 2017, but by 2019 he made himself into a valuable piece of the Braves’ bullpen. He posted a 3.16 ERA/4.24 FIP across 68 1/3 innings in 51 appearances and 4 starts in 2019. When the bottom fell out from the Braves’ rotation plans in 2020, Newcomb stepped in and made four starts to disastrous results: 11.20 ERA/7.51 FIP while walking 4 per nine innings and striking out 6.6 per nine. Despite the currently-thin rotation, the Braves plan on returning Newcomb to the bullpen, per The Athletic’s David O’Brien (via Twitter).

The Braves might see some reinforcements in the rotation shortly with Cole Hamels expected to make his Braves’ debut on Wednesday, per O’Brien (via Twitter). Huascar Ynoa, Bryse Wilson, and Newcomb can provide multi-inning efforts from the bullpen, while Josh Tomlin, Ian Anderson, Kyle Wright and Hamels take turns in the rotation. Max Fried can be activated from the injured list as early as Wednesday to join the rotation, but the Braves have not updated his health status yet.

Braves Option Sean Newcomb

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The Braves optioned lefty Sean Newcomb to the team’s alternate training site after tonight’s game. He’ll remain on the 40-man roster and in the 60-man player pool.

This is the latest in a series of hits to the Atlanta rotation. In this case, as with Mike Foltynewicz, it’s simply a matter of inadequate performance.

Newcomb, 27, was bombed in a forgettable start this evening. He recorded only four outs while doling out a pair of walks and a pair of long balls and permitting eight total earned runs.

That performance represented another segment of a roller coaster season … which is itself but a part of a rather topsy-turvy career. The southpaw has had his share of success but never quite fully found his groove in the majors.

In 2018, Newcomb emerged as a solid rotation piece, running a 3.90 ERA in 164 frames. He ended up spending most of last year in the bullpen, where he worked to a 3.04 ERA in 51 appearances.

The Braves had cause to hope that Newcomb might step up when the opportunity arose to return to the rotation. Instead, he’ll have to earn his way back to the active roster. It’s back to the drawing board for the club, which will have to dip into the farm for another arm to start (or help man a bullpen game).

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