Julio Teheran was officially named opening day starter by the Braves on Monday, which was perhaps the least surprising announcement of spring but an historic one nonetheless.
He’ll be the first Atlanta-era Braves pitcher to start five consecutive season openers, after previously sharing the record of four straight by Greg Maddux (1993-96) and Rick Mahler (1985-88).
“It’s a great honor,” Teheran said, “and this time making history in this organization, it’s exciting and motivating. I’m just happy to be once again start opening day and want to get the win.”
The Braves open the season March 29 at home against the Phillies.
The announcement was made minutes before Teheran faced Toronto in a Grapefruit League game on Monday and he proceeded to pitch like an opening day starter, limiting the Blue Jays to four hits and one walk with five strikeouts in 6-2/3 scoreless innings of a 6-0 win while lowering his spring ERA to 0.87 in five starts.
“Everything was just sharp, quick,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “It was even better than he has been. That’s probably the best he’s thrown, I think, all spring. Just how the ball’s jumping out of his hand, it was really good.”
Teheran (4-0) fired 59 strikes in 87 pitches, topped out at 92 mph with his fastball and kept hitters off-balance by mixing in his off-speed pitches well and featuring a particularly effective change-up.
“He’s been working on feel of pitches, all that stuff,” Braves pitching coach Chuck Hernandez said. “Today he had it working a little closer to game-ready. He’s in a good place, I like where he’s at.”
Teheran has allowed 16 hits, two runs and five walks with 12 strikeouts in 20-2/3 innings this spring, including four scoreless outings in five.
The 27-year-old Colombian has focused attention this spring on mixing all his pitches in a varieity of counts and improving his change-up, a pitch he used effectively earlier in his career but got away from in recent seasons.
“The change-up was a lot better (Monday),” he said. “I’ve been trying this spring training to keep it up, even if I throw a couple of bad ones. It’s something that I really want this year, and today it was the most consistently that I’ve thrown it this spring. I’m happy with what I did today.”
The two-time former All-Star is aiming to rebound from a disappointing 2017 season that saw hims struggle mightily in home games on the way to an overall 11-13 record and 4.49 ERA that was his worst in a full season.
“What I’ve done this offseason ... this spring training has been tremendous for me,” he said. “That’s how I want to start the season and keep it up.”
Hall of Famers Maddux and Phil Niekro are the only pitchers to make five opening-day starts for the Atlanta Braves, and Hall of Famer Warren Spahn made six opening-day starts for the Braves prior to the franchise’s Atlanta era.
The only National League pitcher with a longer active streak than Tehran is the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw, who is scheduled to make his franchise-record eighth consecutive opening day start.
Teheran was lined up all spring for the opening-day assignment, which seemed a certainty after the Braves failed to add an ace-caliber starter during the offseason.
His first two regular-season starts will be at SunTrust Park on opening day and presumably April 3 against the Nationals in the fifth game of a six-game homestand.
Teheran will try to avoid a repeat of the extreme home-road disparity in his splits from 2017, when he was 3-10 with a 5.86 ERA in 17 home starts and 8-3 with a 3.14 ERA in 15 road starts.
“What happened last year – it was kind of the year I didn’t want to have, “ he said. “And this year is different.”
