After Gausman’s past three starts, it’s no surprise the Braves will turn to Sean Newcomb in Saturday’s divisional matchup with the Phillies. The southpaw relieved Gausman yesterday and threw 4.2 innings of shutout baseball with six strikeouts and no walks. The spectacular performance dropped his ERA to 2.59 on the year. In 16 relief appearances, he has only allowed three earned runs and two walks.
On the other hand, Gausman has been a mess, giving up 19 runs in his last 8.1 innings pitched. He’s a two-pitch pitcher that is only throwing one pitch effectively at the moment, and MLB hitters are teeing off. Perhaps his repertoire is better suited for the bullpen, but if he can’t figure it out there, the Braves are going to have to find him a spot on another team.
Unless Newcomb goes out on Saturday and lights the world on fire, I wouldn’t expect him to be starting for the remainder of the season. He’s been integral to the bullpen’s turnaround, and the Braves need him back there.
Dallas Keuchel is also set to make his second start as a Brave in Mississippi on Saturday. If all goes well there, he could be set to make his Atlanta debut on June 21st. That would push Newcomb back into a bullpen role. Keuchel looked fantastic in seven scoreless innings of one-hit ball last night in Rome.