LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — After three days of workouts for pitchers and catchers, two starting pitchers who’ve particularly impressed Braves officials are veteran Kyle Kendrick and left-hander Manny Banuelos.
Kendrick signed a minor league contract and is competing for a starting-rotation spot.
“Kendrick threw the ball well, hit the glove,” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said after Kendrick’s mound session Tuesday.
Former Braves manager Bobby Cox, now a senior adviser, has watched pitchers throw each day on the backfields and also pointed out the work of Kendrick as well as Banuelos.
Banuelos impressed as a rookie in 2015 before undergoing arthroscopic elbow surgery in September to remove a bone chip in his pitching elbow.
He had Tommy John elbow surgery in October 2012 as a Yankees prospect, missed the entire 2013 season, and was closely monitored with innings limits in 2014 by the Yankees, who traded Banuelos to the Braves on Jan. 1, 2015, for relievers David Carpenter and Chasen Shreve. Carpenter is now back with the Braves.
Braves officials who’ve seen Banuelos throw this spring say he looks “free and easy” in his delivery and believe it might be the first time he’s been pain-free since before Tommy John surgery.
