WASHINGTON – Sean Newcomb pitched so splendidly in his major league debut Saturday that there seemed little doubt the Braves would give the left-hander another start this week. And it became official Monday.
Newcomb will start Friday against the Marlins in a series opener at SunTrust Park, where he held the Mets to three hits, one unearned run and two walks with seven strikepouts in 6 1/3 innings in his debut Saturday during the first game of a doubleheader.
“Obviously after the game you’re hoping for that, that you get that next opportunity,” Newcomb said. “Finding out for sure is kind of a relief, but it’s good that I know now and can just keeping working for it going forward.”
He was told by manager Brian Snitker before a Monday afternoon workout at Nationals Park prior to the Braves’ series opener against the Nationals. Snitker wanted him to know so that he would plan his workout accordingly and stay on his regular between-starts schedule. There was no dramatic “you made it, kid” moment in the telling.
“I just told him, pretty much,” Snitker said. I’m not sure he didn’t know, but he probably suspected it if we didn’t send him back (to the minors after Saturday’s game). Not keeping you up here to cheer-lead. Gonna run you out there again. Holy cow, I want to see that again.”
Bartolo Colon, the struggling veteran whose spot Newcomb filled after Colon was placed on the 10-day disabled list with an oblique strain, is eligible to come off the DL on Friday but won't. Not yet, at least. Colon, who is 2-7 with a majors-worst 7.78 ERA, accompanied the team to Washington, threw a side session in the bullpen Monday and will throw at least one or two more before the Braves decide if he's ready to be activated.
Snitker has indicated Colon would return to a starting role, but that’s not been said definitively by the manager or any Braves official.
As for Newcomb, Snitker said there was a chance that Newcomb would’ve been sent down after Saturday if the Braves had to use their bullpen extensively in the second game of the doubleheader against the Mets. But Matt Wisler worked six innings and the bullpen wasn’t taxed heavily, so the Braves were able to do what they wanted and keep Newcomb up and pencil him in for his next start.
“It’ll be good, keep him on his routine and everything, get him back out there,” Snitker said. “He handled everything. Even when he came in that morning to let me know he was there. He was just kind of matter-of-fact, ‘I’m here, ready to go.’ I was like, OK, go have some breakfast, see you out there in a couple of hours. Enjoy yourself…. In your big league debut, I guess you have fun, but it’s got to be a little nerve-racking. My God, it’s something you look forward to your whole life.”
If it was nerve-racking for Newcomb, the big lefty sure masked it well.
“I don’t know that you ever see a kid handle it any better, that’s for sure,” Snitker said.
Newcomb said, “I felt like it was just like any other start. Obviously on a different stage and different setting and everything, but the way I felt was it was just like any other start. Probably the most butterflies I got was the morning when I woke up, just not really knowing what to do, kind of unsure where I was going, find the park, how to get into the clubhouse, stuff like that. That was probably what I was most nervous about. But pitching-wise I felt fine.
“Looking forward to the next one. It should be fun.”
