Anthony

Lerew

Lerew had been out since the end of May with a strained lower back.

Lerew had to be demoted to Double-A Mississippi in June because of his struggles, but he’s really turned it around lately. The Braves might want to have him replace Kevin Barry or Lance Cormier in the rotation next time through. He’s probably not ready to be a solid starter, but he does have some upside, which is more than can be said for Barry, Cormier or Jason Shiell.

Lerew does make more sense in the pen then Richmond’s other top pitching prospect, Chuck James. The 22-year-old went 4-4 with a 3.48 ERA, 63 H and 53/23 K/BB in 72 1/3 IP for Triple-A Richmond. He can be used in long relief and in a mop-up role.

Lerew, who had an ERA around 6.00 after April, is 5-2 with a 4.18 ERA, 61 H and 51/29 K/BB in 64 2/3 IP for Mississippi. A potential third or fourth starter or setup man, he is one of the prospects the Braves could move for immediate help next month.

Lerew is a quality prospect as a starting pitcher, but there’s a real chance he’ll contribute in Atlanta as a reliever by July or August. He hasn’t given up a run in six innings this spring.

Lerew went 6-2 with a 3.93 ERA, 70 H and 64/32 K/BB in 75 2/3 IP for Double-A Mississippi. He still might become a part of Atlanta’s bullpen after the All-Star break.

No injury was reported, but it seemed like an awfully quick hook, given that it was the first game of a doubleheader. The Braves ended up using six pitchers in the loss to the Red Sox, so they’ll need a quality outing from John Smoltz tonight. Speculation was that Lerew would lose his rotation spot to Mark Redman with a poor outing today, but Redman was even worse in relief, giving up four runs in 1 1/3 innings.

“I’ve had a little soreness in my elbow the last month or so,” Lerew said. “I’ve just got to get some treatment on it and see what’s going on in there.” If Lerew lands on the DL, it will probably put Mark Redman back into Atlanta’s rotation.

Mark Redman could move into the rotation in Lerew’s place after the right-hander struggled in his last two outings. It’s possible Lerew will be optioned to Triple-A once healthy.