AJ Smith-Shawver impresses in Triple-A start

Thomas was dealing with an intercostal strain and left off the Wild Card roster by Atlanta for their series against the Phillies. He, AJ Smith-Shawver and JR Ritchie are the new editions; while Dominic Smith, DaShawn Keirsey Jr. and Luke Williams have been taken off.

Smith-Shawver has posted an inflated 7.71 ERA across 21 innings over five starts since making it back from last year’s Tommy John surgery in late July. The 23-year-old’s stuff should play up considerably in shorter bursts out of the bullpen and he figures to make Atlanta’s postseason roster. It’s unclear how the Braves are going to fill his rotation spot since he was lined up to face the Cubs on Wednesday.

Smith-Shawver gave up five hits, walked two and struck out three. He fell to 0-2 in five starts with a 7.71 ERA. Smith-Shawver hasn’t shown fantasy managers that he has much to offer in this tour of the big leagues. He’s lined up to face the Cubs on the road next week.

Smith-Shawver gave up six hits, walked three and struck out five. He fell to 0-1 in four starts with a 7.13 ERA. Smith-Shawver can safely be left on the waiver wire in mixed leagues for now. He’s lined up to face the Rays at home next week.

Smith-Shawver’s velocity was up from last week, though it faded quickly; his fastball averaged 97.4 mph in the first, 95.6 mph in the third and 93.8 mph in the fifth, Still, the overall average of 96.1 mph was closer to the 96.8 mph he averaged in Triple-A than last week’s 95.0 mph against the Twins. Smith-Shawver ended up with three strikeouts and three walks tonight. It was a more promising showing than last week’s, but it wasn’t the kind of performance that suggests he needs to be picked up right now in mixed leagues. He’ll probably face the Nationals next week.

Smith-Shawver averaged 96.8 mph with his fastball during his seven Triple-A starts and 97.2 mph in his one start for the Braves last month, but he didn’t show that kind of stuff today. He averaged 95.0 mph with his 20 fastballs, and the 31 splitters he threw were 2.8 mph slower than they were a few weeks ago. Maybe it was a one-time blip, but if not, he’s going to be a whole lot less interesting down the stretch. He’s supposed to stay in the rotation and face the Dodgers next week.

Now it’s official. Smith-Shawver will come back up to start for the Braves on Wednesday after he was removed from Triple-A Gwinnett’s probable pitchers earlier today. He’s a splitter-heavy righty with above average velocity who could find success. In his season debut against the Mets, his fastball jumped up two ticks to 97 mph and that velocity held during his two starts back in Triple-A. He’s also mixed in a new sinker against right-handed batters. By slotting in the rotation on Wednesday, he’ll give Chris Sale an extra day of rest.

Bowman reports that Herick Hernandez is meant to start for Triple-A Gwinnett tonight now in lieu of Smith-Shawver, which would free him up to be recalled and pitch in the big leagues tomorrow. Rumored to return to the majors since his season debut against the Mets three weeks ago, he has 13 strikeouts, four walks, and allowed two earned runs over 11 innings in two starts since. He’d be moderately interesting if or when he’s formally promoted.

Smith-Shawver has allowed just two runs while recording a 13/4 K/BB ratio across 11 innings in a pair of starts since being sent back to Triple-A Gwinnett in late July. He allowed two runs over 4 1/3 innings during his season debut back on July 29. Weiss added that he doesn’t want to move to a six-man rotation, so they’re going to have to make a decision with the rest of their established arms before bringing Smith-Shawver back in the near future. He’s worthy of a speculative roster spot in deeper mixed leagues based on his prospect pedigree and recent performance.

He also struck out six and walked four while throwing 55 of his 89 pitches for strikes. Smith-Shawver was used as the 27th man in the Braves’ doubleheader last week, which meant he headed back to the minors after the game. The Braves kept him on schedule during a trade deadline in which they tried to trade for Jacob deGrom and Logan Webb. Considering the Braves only came away with Tyler Mahle, Smith-Shawver still has a clear path to a rotation spot. The expectation is that he may make one more start in Triple-A to continue shaking some of the rust, and then he should be up in the big leagues for the remainder of the season.