MIAMI – Eric Stults is 35 and has pitched in a whole lot of towns and cities across North America with five major league organizations, along with a season spent with the Hiroshima Carp in Japan.
The left-hander has seen a lot of things.
But he’s not jaded. All his travels have given him an appreciation for things such as making the Braves’ opening-day roster, after signing a minor league contract with a non-roster invitation to spring training.
Stults said it was just the fourth time he made a major league opening-day roster, and now the Braves’ No. 4 starter will pitch the home opener against the Mets on Friday.
“I’m excited to make this team; it’s a great bunch of guys,” he said before Wednesday’s series finale at Marlins Park. “Obviously when you start the season 2-0, that’s exciting, and then to go back and have the home opener…. You want to start the year out well, and you want to win at home. I’m just excited for the opportunity.”
Stults spent the past two seasons with the Padres. After posting a 3.93 ERA in a career-high 203 2/3 innings in 2013, he slipped to 8-17 with a 4.30 ERA in 176 innings last season. But he finished strong, going 5-4 with a 2.74 ERA and eight quality starts in his last 11 outings.
“Around the All-Star break, the last 2 ½ months, I felt like I started to throw the ball well,” he said. “And that was (after he started) picking up the tempo of my delivery, not being quite as deliberate. That’s where I noticed a change as far as how last season ended, and what I tried to take into this season.”
