Braves Rumors: Justus Sheffield signing could be the pitching stopgap
With the injuries to Max Fried and Kyle Wright creating lengthy absences, the Atlanta Braves have just barely enough depth in the organization — assuming they want to rely on prospects Dylan Dodd and Jared Shuster to accomplish that — to bide their time through the next two months while they're out of the rotation.
GM Alex Anthopolous, however, seems to be looking on the veteran free agent market to try and find a stopgap option. On Friday, the Braves signed 26-year-old lefty Justus Sheffield to a minor-league contract.
Sheffield spent time with the Mariners in each of the last four seasons after making his MLB debut with the Yankees back in 2018. The 2021 season, his longest tenure in the majors, wasn't kind to the southpaw as he had a 6.83 ERA and 1.842 WHIP over 15 starts and 21 total appearances.
Having said that, sheffield was good in 2020 with a 3.58 ERA and 1.301 WHIP in 10 starts and solid last year over six appearances and one start for Seattle, posting a 3.86 ERA and 1.286 WHIP.
The fact fo the matter is that the Braves don't need to get overly urgent with addressing the need for more pitching depth while this injuries are plaguing them. Sheffield has proven to be a fine innings eater and starter in his career to this point and, at his age, could still have upside. Bringing him in on a minor-league deal makes a ton of sense to see if he can be the right guy to fill a role in the rotation or the bullpen.
Braves Rumors: Michael Soroka rehab continues to hit roadblocks, but not with health
It's been a long road back to the majors for Michael Soroka after he made just three starts before tearing his Achilles in the 2020 season. Still, the Braves have continued to remain hopeful that the 2019 All-Star who's still just 25 years old can return and be a big part of the rotation.
That road might still be longer, though, but it's thankfully not because of his health this time around.
Soroka, who missed all of the 2021 and 2022 seasons after a rehab setback and then re-tearing his Achilles, has been working his way back after playing with Atlanta in spring training, most recently making starts with the Triple-A Gwinnett Stripers. And suffice it to say that it's not been going well.
After giving up three runs on four hits and two walks on Thursday night, Soroka is now 0-2 in Triple-A and has posted a 5.47 ERA. Those numbers don't inspire a ton of confidence that a pitcher who hasn't taken the mound in the majors for almost three years now is ready to make that jump again.
There is a silver lining, it should be said. Soroka was bad out of the gate for Gwinnett, giving up all three runs in the first inning. But he then got in a groove and retired nine-straight batters.
With the injuries to Fried and Wright, among others, getting Soroka back would be a massive boost for the Braves right now but, more importantly, moving forward.
Braves Rumors: Rays DFA'ing Chase Anderson presents perfect trade target
Sticking with the theme of pitching, if the Braves don't see Soroka back on the 26-man roster sometime soon and Justus Sheffield doesn't work out, they could still be looking for short-term fixes that are easy, cheap, and could potentially develop into a longer-term piece for the rest of the season.
The Tampa Bay Rays may have all but handed Atlanta a perfect option.
To make room for Jake Diekman on the big-league roster, the Rays designated veteran Chase Anderson for assignment, meaning that Tampa Bay can either trade him, place him on waivers, or he could choose to not accept the assignment and hit free agency if he clears waivers.
Admittedly, the past few seasons bouncing around the majors haven't been pretty for Anderson. He's made 33 appearances and 23 starts over the past three seasons with the Blue Jays, Phillies and Reds, going 5-10 with a 6.81 ERA and 1.495 WHIP over that span. With the Rays this year, though, he made two relief appearances, lasting five innings and giving up no runs and only three base-runners.
Considering the depth of pitching the Rays have, they could be willing to let the 35-year-old hit waivers or go in a trade for next to nothing. Though Alex Anthopolous doesn't plan on making a trade right now, this is too easy of an option to not consider as someone to deepen the bullpen for bullpen games or even as a spot starter.
