SAN FRANCISCO — The Braves have used 12 starting pitchers – not counting three relievers who acted as openers for bullpen games – as they’ve navigated the lengthy season, which has included injuries to Max Fried and Kyle Wright.
They have started Michael Soroka, who was seemingly destined for stardom before the Achilles tendon injuries. They have used Jared Shuster and Dylan Dodd, the two rookies who impressed in spring training. They have given multiple starts to Allan Winans, who debuted at a later age than most but proved he deserved those chances at the big-league level.
And then there’s AJ Smith-Shawver, the top prospect who forced his way to the major-league roster by excelling in short stints at each minor-league level. The Braves have gotten a look at him, and he’s now a depth piece.
For now, he unfortunately won’t be filling any rotation vacancies.
Smith-Shawver was placed on the seven-day minor-league injured list, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. The move, made Wednesday, was retroactive to Monday, which means Smith-Shawver would be eligible to return Monday.
The Braves don’t release injury timelines publicly, but they haven’t formally shut down Smith-Shawver for the season, which is encouraging. This means that, depending on multiple factors, he could still help the Braves before the season ends.
The right-hander has made five major-league appearances this season, including four starts. He is 1-0 with a 4.57 ERA in 21-2/3 innings. He has 18 strikeouts.
For the Triple-A Gwinnett Stripers, Smith-Shawver is 2-2 with a 4.58 ERA in seven starts. He has pitched 35-1/3 innings and has 39 strikeouts.
Something to note about Smith-Shawver: He began pitching full-time only in the summer leading into his senior year of high school. Unlike some of his peers, his arm doesn’t have a ton of mileage on it. But he’s still a 20-year-old adjusting to professional baseball.
Between the minors and majors this season, Smith-Shawver has logged 77 innings. That’s probably easily more than any other year of his life.
After the Braves drafted him in 2021, he pitched 8-1/3 frames following his high school season. Last season, he totaled 68-2/3 innings.
If he pitches again this season, he’ll only add to a career-high innings total. The Braves probably always were going to need to monitor his innings as this season progressed. (The team always tries to look out for any player’s health and safety throughout the year.)
Given he continues developing, Smith-Shawver should be a future rotation piece for the Braves. He’s a hard-throwing righty who also has shown an ability to improve his secondary pitches. He’s only dedicated himself to pitching for two-plus years, so his ceiling could be rather high.
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