The Stakes for Grant Holmes
Atlanta had a massive test on its hands. The Braves hosted the Colorado Rockies for a three-game set at Truist Park with a 79-55 record entering the game. They were able to stretch that win streak to five, and Grant Holmes was the guy who had to make it happen. He’s sitting at 8-5 with a 3.64 ERA for the season, but the clock is ticking. Reynaldo López is circling back to the rotation soon, which means every single start is a make-or-break audition. If Holmes didn’t deliver a quality outing, he’s watching from the bullpen while López takes his seat.
That’s the reality of this job and with three earned runs over five innings, that may not be good enough.
Battery Power breaks down the numbers: Holmes had gone six innings in three of his four August appearances. Those starts came against the Marlins, the Yankees, and the Chicago White Sox. He did have one disaster night where he gave up six earned runs in just 3.2 innings against the Diamondbacks at home on August 15, but don’t let that one bad outing fool you. He was sporting a 2.49 ERA for the month despite that rough patch. This recent form proves he can handle big league lineups when he finds his rhythm. The Braves needed him to keep that momentum rolling while they face two other NL West teams, the pressure was definitely on.
Sugano’s Trouble with Contact
Tomoyuki Sugano walked into a minefield against the Braves. He holds a 12-7 record, sure, but he’s carrying a 4.96 ERA entering this start. He was trying to bounce back after a weird performance in his last outing. Yahoo Sports notes that Sugano went only three innings versus the Cleveland Guardians. In that match, he threw 93 pitches, surrendered five runs, and gave up nine hits. The Cleveland Guardians effectively inflated his pitch count by hitting an absurd number of foul balls. Their contact consistently found gaps for base hits during the entire game, which is exactly the kind of problem that eats up starters.
Before that mess, Sugano also struggled during his start against the Los Angeles Dodgers. That contest saw him allow seven runs on seven hits over five innings. Sugano has found teams excelling at contact to be problematic at this stage of the season. This is especially true for those that can waste pitches. His peak performance occurs when he works fast and generates weak contact resulting in ground balls, and Atlanta is a tough match-up in that regard. The Rockies came to Truist Park 30 games under .500 with a 52-82 record.
The Rotation Battle Ahead
The Braves have dealt with a ton of injuries in their rotation this year. Holmes has proven to be a reliable arm despite the chaos. He can get strikeouts, but has mostly averaged about four per game this season. Meanwhile, the walks can fluctuate but typically average two to three per game. The bullpen should have been fresh due to the heroics of Chris Sale the prior game. This gave the starters a safety net if things went wrong early. Another quality start could have helped Holmes stay in the rotation. Depending on what the coaches saw during the game, the reality of the bullpen role again is real.
