Braves beat reporter provides timeline on Robert Suarez return
The Braves have maintained a stance for months that they believe Robert Suarez will be available for the playoffs. However, he hasn’t pitched in a game since mid-June, and the time for a potential rehab assignment has passed. The minor-league season ends this week, which means if Suarez is going to get some work in […]
The Braves have maintained a stance for months that they believe Robert Suarez will be available for the playoffs. However, he hasn’t pitched in a game since mid-June, and the time for a potential rehab assignment has passed.
The minor-league season ends this week, which means if Suarez is going to get some work in before the postseason, it’s going to come with the major-league club — something Braves beat reporter Mark Bowman confirmed on Tuesday.
This is actually something I’ve mentioned over the last month since Suarez ramped up his activities. Unlike position players and especially starting pitchers, relievers don’t really need rehab assignments. It’s typically nice to get them a few appearances against lesser competition before throwing them back into the fire, but in this case, the Braves would probably like to see him against major-league competition immediately before he pitches in a high-leverage situation come the playoffs.
Hopefully, Atlanta has an opportunity to ease him into things in low-pressure situations. The Braves currently have a 4.5-game lead in the NL East, which is really a 5.5-game lead because they own the tiebreaker over the Phillies. If they can essentially wrap things up in the coming days, the final week of the season could feel like an enhanced rehab assignment for Robert Suarez, giving the Braves a good idea of what they have in him before all the chips are on the table.
—
(Photo by Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire)
What's Your Reaction?
