MILWAUKEE – When Chaz Roe was claimed off waivers this week by the Braves, the veteran reliever was eager to pitch as soon as possible. And not because the team and its bullpen were on a bit of a roll, though that was an added bonus.
“I sat for 10 days without throwing off the mound, so the faster they could get me in there to get it going, the better,” said Roe, who had not pitched in a game since July 28, the day before he was designated for assignment by the Baltimore Orioles.
Claimed by the Braves on Sunday, he joined them Monday in Milwaukee, though Roe only arrived a couple of minutes before the first pitch that night due to a delayed Delta flight. He pitched in games Tuesday and Wednesday, working 1 2/3 scoreless innings to help the Braves’ bullpen run its scoreless-innings streak to 14.
For the month of August, Braves relievers led the majors in ERA (1.35) and opponents’ average (.158) before Thursday.
Roe gave up two hits and struck out two in 1 1/3 innings Wednesday against the Brewers.
“They greeted me with arms wide open and I felt comfortable as soon as I came in here,” the lanky right-hander said of his new teammates. “So that was a big help,”
The Braves are the sixth organization and fourth major league team for Roe, 29, a former first-round draft pick by the Rockies (2005) out of Lafayette High School in Lexington, Ky. He debuted with Arizona in 2013, pitched for the Yankees in 2014, and was with the Orioles in 2015 and for one month this season.
Roe has a 4.09 ERA in 71 appearances over parts of four seasons, including a 3.18 ERA and .227 opponents’ average in 11 appearances this season with 13 strikeouts and seven walks. Right-handed batters are just 3-for-24 (.125) against him this season, while lefties are 7-for-20 (.350) with a .458 OBP.
He didn’t make his season debut with the Orioles until July 1, gave up two runs in his first game, then posted a 2.08 ERA and .212 opponents’ average over his next eight appearances before being DFA’d and picked up by the Braves.
“It was a great opportunity,” he said. “That’s the first thing I thought, it was a great opportunity here. I’ve been through this process before, I’ve been in different clubhouses. It was exciting. It was exciting to get here and start a new chapter.”
