Mark Feinsand is BACK, and with some news that will bring music to the ears of Braves Country. According to a source of his, the Braves have emerged as the sole frontrunner to land Dallas Keuchel.
According to a source, the Braves have emerged as frontrunners to sign Dallas Keuchel. Yankees remain in the mix, but Atlanta appears to be making a push.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) June 6, 2019
The move to acquire Keuchel makes sense, especially if it is only a one year deal. While the Braves starting rotation has been hot at times; there remain far more questions than answers. Can first-year starters Mike Soroka and Max Fried continue to anchor the rotation? The same can be asked of Julio Teheran. He’s been fantastic for the Braves of late, but his track record is not one of consistency.
Unfortunately, those are merely the secondary concerns for the Braves rotation. Kevin Gausman has been awful for the majority of the year – specifically in his last two outings. His ERA is above six, and his WAR is nearly -1.0. The front office has to prep a backup plan because this cannot go on for much longer.
Mike Foltynewicz has also not been able to find his 2018 form. He had a pretty good outing today against the Pirates. After a second inning where he gave up three runs courtesy of two home runs, Folty settled down to finish six innings without allowing another to cross the plate. However, long balls continue to plague Foltynewicz. He’s allowed 15 of them in less than 45 innings. There’s no telling what the Braves might get out of him the rest of the year.
All of this has Alex Anthopoulos doing something many thought he would not do – aggressively pursue Dallas Keuchel. We will keep you updated as this could move rather quickly. Stay tuned.