Mike Soroka’s slightly delayed debut went swimmingly Friday afternoon. It was the first of potentially five outings leading to his first opening-day start.
The right-hander tossed two scoreless innings in the split-squad Braves’ 5-3 loss to the Yankees. He allowed three soft hits, struck out three and didn’t issue a walk. He faced several players who figure into the Yankees’ immediate plans, including Gleyber Torres, D.J. LeMahieu, Mike Tauchman, Gio Urshela and Miguel Andujar.
Soroka threw 16 strikes in 20 pitches, including only a six-pitch first frame when he pitched around a leadoff single by getting Tauchman to hit a sinker into a double play.
“It’s fun to be able to see some guys you don’t see that often, right?” said Soroka, referring to the Yankees’ lineup. “Gleyber (Torres) being one of them. You see all the highlights and rightfully so. He’s a superstar in the making. It’s good to face some of those guys and see how you match up against a team you probably won’t pitch against until hopefully the World Series.”
Soroka was scheduled to start Feb. 23, but was pushed back after feeling tightness in his right adductor. He threw a live batting practice Monday and proclaimed he felt healthy afterward.
The 22-year-old was an All-Star in his first full major-league season. Soroka had a 2.68 ERA, fifth best in the majors, over 29 starts. He finished second in Rookie of the Year voting and sixth in Cy Young balloting.
“That was exactly what we wanted right there,” manager Brian Snitker said of Soroka’s first start. “He was just out there doing his thing. That ball was live. The sinker, breaking ball was good. That’s what you’d expect out of him.”
Barring an unforeseen development, expect Soroka to take the mound opening day, March 26, in Arizona.
Other notable happenings from Friday:
» Johan Camargo hit his first homer in the second inning, a no-doubter off Deivi Garcia that landed fairly deep on the right-field concourse. Camargo hammered 19 home runs in 2018 before dipping to only seven last season, in part because of his sporadic playing time.
Camargo has been playing every other day this spring as he competes against Austin Riley for the opening-day start at third base. Camargo is considered the heavy favorite to win that position, and moments such as Friday’s will only help his case.
Snitker said Camargo will be in Saturday’s lineup as well, when the Braves face the Rays in nearby Port Charlotte.
» Grant Dayton's bid to make the bullpen is off to a poor start. The lefty allowed two runs on three hits in his outing, meaning he's surrendered four runs on seven hits through his first three exhibition outings (three innings).
While the Braves could certainly use another southpaw in their bullpen – Will Smith is the only one currently locked into that group – Dayton hasn’t made a strong case thus far. The 32-year-old appeared in 36 games across the majors and Triple-A in 2019 after missing the previous season recovering from Tommy John surgery. He has one minor league option remaining.
“He’s having a hard time putting hitters away,” Snitker said. “Especially left-handed hitters. He’s getting two strikes on them, but he’s having a hard time polishing them off. He’s throwing it over, but the location is not real good yet.”
» Veteran Josh Tomlin pitched three scoreless innings Friday. While he's not promised to make the initial roster, a solid spring should again vault him into the team's long-relief role, where he did an admirable job last season. He had a 3.74 ERA over 79-1/3 innings (51 games).
The Braves re-signed Tomlin to a non-guaranteed deal when pitchers and catchers reported Feb. 12. They’d long wanted him back, but he was considering the possibility of a guaranteed offer from another club. The expectation is he’ll resume his same role in the Braves’ bullpen.
» Meanwhile in Clearwater, the Braves' other split-squad group lost to the Phillies 6-5. Bryse Wilson pitched 2-2/3 scoreless innings, but hard-throwing lefty Kyle Muller struggled mightily, allowing five runs on four hits while registering only one out in the fifth inning. As tantalizing as Muller's physical traits are (listed at 6-foot-7, 250 pounds), he's very much a work-in-progress with his command.
Dansby Swanson and Adam Duvall each had two hits for the “other” Braves. Top outfield prospect Cristian Pache had a tough day, striking out three times.
» Max Fried will make his second start Saturday, against the Rays. It will be the Braves' first night game of the spring, with first pitch scheduled for 6:05 p.m. The team will play its second consecutive road game Sunday, when Mike Foltynewicz faces the Red Sox in Fort Myers.
