Mike Soroka completed his second rehab start last weekend after being transferred to Gwinnett. In his first outing, Soroka was nearly untouchable for the Rome Braves, striking out eight of the first nine batters he faced and tossing four scoreless innings. It was nearly a flawless return to the mound, but the second start for the Stripers didn’t go as well as he’d hoped.
In his second rehab start with Triple-A Gwinnett, Soroka was charged with six hits, two runs, and one walk with no strikeouts in 3 1/3 innings, throwing 39 strikes in 58 pitches. Obviously, this isn’t what Soroka envisioned after dominating his first rehab assignment; however, that’s not what’s important.
Braves Country wants the Maple Maddux of old to come out and throw seven scoreless innings while striking out nine batters. That’s unrealistic, and it’s not the Braves’ top priority. At this point, the club is just hoping that after every start, Soroka feels healthy and doesn’t need anything more than the standard five or so days of rest before his next start. The primary goal is to have him ready for the 2023 campaign.
The good news is that “he’s healthy and looking forward to his next outing,” according to 92.9 The Game’s Grant McAuley.
Well, that next outing is here. Soroka will make his third rehab start on Saturday, pitching for the Stripers for the second time and six days after his last appearance. There was a scheduled off-day for the Stripers on Monday, so the six-day rest isn’t abnormal for Soroka. If he continues to pitch every sixth day, his next start should come on Sept. 2.
From all the reports I saw following his second outing, Soroka’s velocity was encouraging, and the stuff looked great, which is all you can hope for. As stated before, he threw 58 pitches in his start for Gwinnett. I imagine the Braves will ramp that up to about 75 pitches this Saturday, then let him loose in the next outing.
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Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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