Mike Foltynewicz will make another rehab start before rejoining the Braves rotation, manager Brian Snitker said Tuesday.
Foltynewicz showed some rust in his third rehab outing with Triple-A Gwinnett. The righty went 3-2/3, allowing six hits, five runs (four earned), walking four and striking out five. That was expected to be Foltynewicz’s final rehab outing.
Instead he’ll make one more appearance to develop a rhythm. Foltynewicz, who threw 85 pitches Monday, would’ve been inserted into the rotation this weekend in Cleveland.
“We’re going to give him one more start,” Snitker said. “I don’t know that it was where he wanted it to be (Monday). But I think probably one more and let him max it out. He went 85, we’ll have him do that again and maybe a little more. But it wasn’t real sharp. He’s missed a lot, all through spring training.”
The Braves will tweak their rotation as a result. Touki Toussaint, Thursday’s probable starter, likely will be bumped to Friday. Julio Teheran can be moved from Friday to Saturday in Foltynewicz’s scheduled spot.
That leaves Thursday, which could be Mike Soroka’s return. Kyle Wright is set to start that day in Triple-A, but he hasn’t been down the minimum of 10 days. Bryse Wilson started for Gwinnett on Tuesday.
Soroka is slated to start for Gwinnett on Wednesday, which the Braves could shift to Thursday in the majors. He’s had two minor-league outings this season, pitching five perfect innings in his first and getting knocked around in his second (four earned runs in 4-1/3 innings).
As for Foltynewicz, the Braves will wait a little longer to see their All-Star back in the majors.
“Still knocking the rust off more than anything,” Snitker said. “Right now it’s not any more than getting back out there. See it a little more crisp.”
