If Wandy Rodriguez hopes to win the Braves’ fifth-starter competition, he’ll need to pitch better than he did Wednesday in his first time out.
The veteran left-hander allowed two hits, one run and two walks in the first inning of an 8-2 Braves loss to the Mets in a Grapefruit League opener at Champion Stadium. Rodriguez had been scheduled to pitch two innings, but was replaced after one because he had already thrown 30 pitches including only 17 strikes.
“All my pitches today had bad location,” said Rodriguez, who walked Juan Lagares to start the game. “One of those days. Bad location.”
Rodriguez, 36, allowed a soft infield hit by Wilmer Flores and a two-out RBI single by Kirk Nieuwenhuis to the right-center gap. Another walk to Eric Campbell loaded the bases before Brandon Allen’s inning-ending grounder to first base.
The battle for the last spot in the Braves’ rotation is expected to be between veteran left-handers Rodriguez and Eric Stults, who are non-roster invitees, and prospects Mike Foltynewicz and lefty Manny Banuelos. If Mike Minor’s sore shoulder is serious – the Braves have scratched him from his planned Sunday start – the Braves might need two of those four candidates in the rotation.
There are indications the Braves are leaning toward having Banuelos start the season in the Triple-A rotation or the major league bullpen as a long reliever, so they could more easily monitor his innings after the former Yankees prospect pitched just 76 1/3 innings in 2014 in his first season after Tommy John elbow surgery.
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