Aaron Harang didn’t mean to slow his roll, but the right-handed Braves pitcher had no choice thanks to the MLB All-Star break.
Harang is 9-6 with a 3.36 ERA so far this season, and he seemed to be on a roll before the mid-July break. In the eight games he started before the break, Harang was 5-2, with one no decision.
“Obviously once you get on a roll you’re not looking forward to those breaks,” Harang said. “It’s just getting back into the groove after a little bit of extra time off.”
In his first outing back, on Saturday July 19, he pitched six innings in which he allowed five hits, and no runs. When he checked out after the sixth inning the game was tied at 0-0. The game remained tied until rookie Shae Simmons gave up two runs and the Braves bullpen was only able to comeback with a single run in the seventh to lose the game.
Harang said he believes his no decision against the Phillies was a result of a tough matchup, not a total loss of momentum.
“We just ran into (Cole) Hamels and he was on his game,” Harang said. “On both sides of the field the pitching was good, the defense was good. We couldn’t muster anything up for a while and same with them. The seventh inning was the decisive factor on both ends.”
Harang said he did “nothing” during the break, besides vacationing with his family. He said he threw in an optional Thursday workout before the team resumed to its’ regular schedule on Friday July 18 with a game against the Phillies. As for what he’s been working on in the bullpen, Harang said he’s been doing a lot of the “same old stuff.”
“No reason to change anything up now,” he said.
In his three starts against Miami so far this season, Harang has settled for one loss and two no decisions.
“You’ve have your guys that have had success against you,” Harang said. “But you’ve got to go out and know the situation coming in.”
