SAN DIEGO – Before Thursday’s opening day game against the Padres, Braves manager Brian Snitker sat on top of the bench in the visiting dugout at Petco Park for his pregame media session. To one question about the new arms in the bullpen, he said this:
“It’s one of those things, every year the bullpen is different. It’s a different dynamic. We lost two really big pieces of our bullpen last year – which was a really good bullpen. And these guys, you know what we’ll do, we’re gonna run ‘em out there, we gotta pitch ‘em all early and we’ll see how they stack up.”
The Braves lost Joe Jiménez for a large chunk of the season because of knee surgery he underwent in October. They lost A.J. Minter to the Mets. And as the offseason months went, from November to December to January, the Braves did not address the bullpen with any major league deals. They instead chose to bring in non-roster invitees and a Rule 5 draft pick to compete for spots in the big-league bullpen.
In his answer about figuring out the different bullpen roles, Snitker foretold the game’s biggest topic. In a 7-4 loss to San Diego, the bullpen became front and center during a disastrous seventh inning in which Snitker decided to go with Hector Neris, who had a bad day. It seemed fitting for a team that could’ve – and probably should’ve – addressed its bullpen over the winter.
This is only one game.
Let’s repeat: It’s only one game.
One more time: It is only one game.
Let’s not make too much of it. The Braves could win the next three here. But the bullpen is worth discussion, if only to point out that Snitker’s job this season is different.
Last season, the roles were defined.
This season, they are not.
“Well, you just gotta use everybody and see where they slot in,” Snitker said after the loss. “With seven in a row – normally, when you play a game, you’re off a day, it changes things a little bit. They’re all gonna have to pitch and they’re all gonna have to be a part, and we’re gonna see where they stack up.”
What Snitker is trying to say is this: Usually, there’s a built-in off day after opening day in case of inclement weather. In beautiful San Diego, the Braves and Padres will play four games before Atlanta heads up the freeway to play the Dodgers for three games. This stretch to begin the season means the relievers will all need to chip in at different times, and potentially in different spots.
The first try didn’t go well.
With a one-run lead in the seventh, Snitker went to Neris, a former closer who won a roster spot after coming to camp as a non-roster invitee. Neris, now 35, had a 1.71 ERA for Houston in 2023, but a 4.70 ERA for the Cubs and Astros last season. The question: He has a track record, but how much does he have left?
The first batter Neris faced, pinch-hitter Gavin Sheets, took him deep on a full-count pitch – a 94 mph fastball up and away – for a game-tying homer. Neris was the first of Atlanta’s new arms to come into the game, and he immediately coughed up the lead. Then he gave up consecutive singles before Snitker went to Aaron Bummer to replace him.
“I think it was just the first game of the season, man, honestly,” said Chris Sale, who started the game. “I think anything can happen. This is a long season. I’ve said it a lot, that I don’t put too much weight in guys’ major league debuts or first games of the season, just because there’s just kind of a lot going on. Check the book: Neris has been a bad man for a long time, so I’ll take him in any situation, any inning, any game. It’s obviously tough, but that’s baseball. This is kind of how it goes sometimes. We got a lot (of games) left, and take this one on the chin, obviously, but show up tomorrow ready to win a ballgame.”
Neris, signed in early March, only made three Grapefruit League appearances. But he was built up for this, Snitker assured.
“Oh no, he’s ready,” Snitker said. “I think he kind of felt like he gave into that leadoff hitter (Sheets). I kind of liked where he was, if we’re gonna use him, because whenever we use him, we’re going to ask that question. He’s been through this and I think where we were in their lineup, it was a good match for them.”
Neris, who didn’t record an out, was charged with three earned runs after the Padres plated two more on Bummer. San Diego’s four-run inning turned Atlanta’s one-run lead into a three-run deficit.
The Braves had six outs with which to play. They even had the tying run at the plate twice in the ninth, but couldn’t come through. The offense went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left 10 men on base. To be fair: The Braves had two would-be homers robbed. One, from Ozzie Albies in the fourth, would’ve been a three-run shot that would’ve broken open the game.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
All of this is to say: The Braves could’ve won this game. If Snitker could’ve gotten to Pierce Johnson in the eighth and Raisel Iglesias in the ninth, they might have won it.
Neither saw the mound.
“You look at our team from last year, and (the bullpen) was a pillar of this team,” Sale said. “I think that was clearly one of our strengths. We got a lot of those guys back and the new additions are really good. Today was a tough one but it’s baseball, it’s going to happen. Those things, they end up happening. I think I could speak for everybody in this clubhouse right now that we have not only all the confidence in the world in this team, but specifically that bullpen.”
Of the regulars in the 2024 bullpen, only four are currently on the 26-man roster: Iglesias, Johnson, Bummer and Dylan Lee. (Jiménez would make it five when he returns, hopefully at some point in July or August.) The left-handed Lee threw a scoreless sixth inning. It all blew up in the seventh.
This was setting up to be a terrific victory to open the season. The teams traded the lead. The Braves had it in the top of the first, then the Padres took it in the bottom half. Albies and Austin Riley homered. Sale battled to complete five innings. Lee preserved the lead.
Then Neris fell apart.
Again, it’s one game. And this will happen more – it happens to every team. But the Braves are working with Neris, Enyel De Los Santos (another non-roster invitee) and Jose Suarez (acquired from the Angels for Ian Anderson). Daysbel Hernández, another member of the bullpen, is relatively unproven over a full season.
To their credit, the Braves tried to sign Jeff Hoffman, but flagged his physical. They were ready to commit money to him. He would’ve improved the bullpen. They likely tried other avenues to do so. No doubt, Braves president of baseball operations and general manager Alex Anthopoulos tried hard. He always does.
But on Day One, a non-roster invitee didn’t do his job. It’s one game, but it serves as a reminder that, at least for now, the Braves have to figure out the bullpen roles with trial and error – something they didn’t need to do last season.
“I feel good about it,” Snitker said of his bullpen. “Until we play them all and get them out there – honestly, we don’t know what the right mix is gonna be yet until we play these games, and the games will determine. We got 161 left. I like where we’re at. Yeah, you want to win the game today. I don’t like that inning like that at any point in time during the season. But there’s gonna be times when we’re on a long run, you get a winning streak going, guys are going to have to pitch in high-leverage situations. It didn’t work today.”
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
