Kyle Wright was a luxury for the 2020 Braves in February. He was competing admirably for a starter job, but the belief before spring training’s abrupt end was that Sean Newcomb and Felix Hernandez would complete the initial spot in the rotation.
In that case, Wright would go to Triple-A Gwinnett and prepare for his next opportunity. That could’ve come in two weeks -- or in two months. As it stood, Wright wasn’t essential to the Braves’ immediate success. They hoped he would step forward and establish himself, but because of their options, they could afford additional patience.
Since then, everything has been thrown everything out of whack. The Braves’ pitching depth – which has dwindled – is far more than a luxury. The Braves need as many quality pitchers as they can have throughout the coming unprecedented, unpredictable 60-game expedition.
Wright is among the players whose importance has greatly increased. He’s again vying for a rotation spot, though the competition is less clustered this time around. Like the previous exhibition season, Cole Hamels is behind and won’t be ready at the beginning. Hernandez decided against playing, clearing another potential roadblock for Wright.
Mike Soroka, Max Fried and Mike Foltynewicz headline the rotation. Newcomb will be the fourth starter with Hamels sidelined. That leaves Wright, fellow youngster Bryse Wilson and Josh Tomlin, the Braves’ reliable long reliever, as the top options for the final spot.
Wright pitched three innings in Thursday’s game, his first intrasquad appearance and his second-to-last tune-up before the season starts. Wright, who battled through some early trouble, said he felt better as his pitch count built.
“Once games start, you want to stay away from (trouble), but it was good for me to get into that situation, make some pitches and get out of it,” he said. “As I threw more, I felt better and better. Executing those pitches was good.”
“I loved his stuff today,” manager Brian Snitker said. “He got better as he went. The location wasn’t great early, but the stuff was good throughout. I thought he threw the ball really well. His ball was moving good. He threw the ball extremely well, I thought.”
Wright’s pre-camp live sessions were in Nashville, where the Vanderbilt product trains in the offseason. Vanderbilt was closed, so he and others worked out at a local high school.
Much of the progress he made was erased just before camp opened, however. Wright wound up slightly behind after he was exposed to someone with COVID-19. Wright tested negative twice before joining the team.
“About the end of quarantine, I got built up through quite a few live (sessions),” he said. “Right before we got here, I was around someone who had it, so I had to get tested. I couldn’t come here until I tested negative, so I had to hit the reset button a little bit and rebuild back up.
“After going out there (Thursday) for three innings, my arm felt really good. I feel like the more I threw, the better I felt. So I feel like I’m in a good spot for sure.”
Wright was having a strong spring before the shutdown. Over the past year, Wright has made numerous mental and mechanical adjustments. He’s appeared more confident since his brief bullpen stint late last season, drawing praise from teammates Tyler Flowers, Soroka and Fried before MLB’s suspension.
“It was a bummer when we shut down because I was feeling so good,” Wright said. “Any time you have some time off to, I guess, recover in a way, you have to take advantage of that as much as you can. For me, I continue to work on what I was during spring training and to make sure I am where I was before.”
The Braves haven’t set their pitching plans yet. Wright has just stuck to his normal five-day routine in preparation for the season. Whether it’s starting or relieving, the Braves will need every inning Wright can provide in the early going.
Opening day is July 24 in New York, where the Braves will open a three-game series against the Mets. Their fifth starter likely would make his debut July 29 at Tampa Bay.
