BRADENTON, Fla. -- When he gave up six homers in two wind-blown innings against Detroit in his 2012 spring debut, Julio Teheran was competing with three others for a spot in the Braves starting rotation. That outing set the tone for his spring and disappointing season at Triple-A.
So it was encouraging for Teheran and the Braves when he had two scoreless innings in his 2013 spring debut Sunday against the Pirates. He allowed no hits and one walk, hit a batter, and struck out two in the Braves’ 9-2 loss.
Not dominant or particularly sharp, but plenty good for the first time out.
“His stuff wasn’t like I saw in the Dominican,” said manager Fredi Gonzalez, who along with Braves general manager Frank Wren saw Teheran pitch six innings of one-hit ball with no walks and eight strikeouts in a winter-league game in December. “(But) that’s good to see him get through it, because most of the time you’ve got to pitch without your good stuff. He threw some good breaking balls, sliders, and his two-seamer had some bite to it.”
Teheran’s fastball velocity was in the 89-94 mph range, mostly 92, similar to last season at Triple-A Gwinnett. His two-seam fastball (sinker) was sharp, while his four-seam fastball was up in the strike zone. He worked on his slider in the Dominican Republic this winter and said he’s comfortable with it and plans to throw it more than his curveball.
After going 7-9 with a 5.08 ERA in his second season at Triple-A, Teheran was 2-1 with a 3.23 ERA in seven starts in winter ball, and gave up only two hits in 16-2/3 scoreless innings over his final three starts. The 22-year-old Colombian is the clear favorite for the No. 5 starter job this spring, although prospect Sean Gilmartin is a legitimate fallback option if he struggles.
“I was feeling good, commanding all my pitches (Sunday),” Teheran said. “I don’t think about (the fifth-starter situation). I just want to do my work and let them know I can pitch here…. If I pitch like this every time, I feel like I’m going to make it.”
Gilmartin debut: After catching Gilmartin's two-inning 2013 spring debut Sunday, Laird's comments were similar to those of former Braves backup catcher David Ross a year ago after Ross caught Gilmartin a few times in camp.
“For the first time pitching, very impressive,” Laird said of the 22-year-old left-hander, who allowed a hit and no walks with two strikeouts in the third and fourth innings. “For a youngster he has a good idea what he wants to do out there. He has command of all four pitches, he’s got command on both sides of the plate. He’s not afraid to come in with that fastball.”
The Braves' first-round pick (28th overall selection) in the 2011 draft, Gilmartin had a 3.84 ERA in 27 starts last year in his first full season of pro ball, with 111 strikeouts and 39 walks in 157 innings in Double-A and Triple-A.
“He’s got a really good idea (how to pitch) for being so young,” Laird said. “It was a fun two innings to catch.”
Gilmartin gave up a couple of hard-hit balls in the third inning when he left some pitches up in the strike zone, but had much better command in the fourth. He could “piggyback” another start with Teheran, each of them pitching three innings in the same game.
“He commands three, four pitches, both sides of the plate,” Gonzalez said. “He does a lot of good stuff.”
Good day for Schafer: To have a shot at making the Opening Day roster as a fifth outfielder, Jordan Schafer must show he can give the Braves offense a jolt with his speed and bat off the bench. He needs to have more days like Sunday.
Schafer replaced Reed Johnson in center field in the sixth inning and went 2-for-2 with a double and a stolen base.
“That’s what he needs to do,” Gonzalez said. “He needs to hit left-handers to left-center field that way (his ninth-inning double). And with his speed, if he can play all three positions in the outfield -- which we’ll see in spring training; he’s going to have to play all three – we’ll benefit.”
It’s too early to know the direction the Braves will take with the final spot or two on the roster, but it’s possible Schafer could end up competing for the last bench job with outfielder Jose Constanza, utility infielder Blake DeWitt, and slugger Evan Gattis, who could be considered for a spot as a third catcher/left fielder and pinch-hitter.
Rocky relief: Jonny Venters gave up a homer in his spring debut for the second year in a row, this time a two-run shot by Clint Barmes in the fifth inning on a 2-2 fastball up in the strike zone.
“First outing, left some pitches up,” the left-hander said. “But my arm felt good. Obviously I’m not happy with the results, but I feel good… I’m positive. I really feel good mechanically and physically. Got to get the sinker down, you know? The home run was a four-seamer that was a little up. It was a 2-2 count, just a little up. He hit it good.”
The Braves aren’t concerned about Venters, figuring as long as he’s healthy he’ll be fine.
Most of the runs Sunday came in the spring debuts of pitchers not likely to make the Opening Day roster. David Carpenter allowed five runs and four hits while recording only two outs in the sixth inning, and Aaron Northcraft was charged with four walks, two runs and one hit in two-thirds of an inning in the eighth.
Short hops: The Braves are back at Champion Stadium on Monday to face Miami at 1:05 p.m., with starter Kris Medlen making his spring debut against Marlins left-hander Wade LeBlanc. The radio broadcast will be carried on 1230 and 1340 AM. There is no TV coverage…. Reliever Wirfin Obispo reported and made the trip to Bradenton, leaving Constanza as the only Brave still out of camp due to visa issues in the Dominican Republic. There were four Braves in that situation when spring training began. Gonzalez said he's not worried about Constanza falling behind others because he played a full winter-ball season and playoffs.
