Crowding of rotation could encouraging a deal sooner than later for Braves’ veteran starter Norris
The Atlanta rotation seems to be in constant motion, but currently consists of these five pitchers:
On June 4, Mike Foltynewicz was added to the Disabled List with a sore right elbow believed to be caused by bone spurs, retroactive to May 31st. The Braves are hopeful that he’ll be up to making a couple of minor league rehab starts shortly and is said to ‘feel good’ in workouts.
Williams Perez was DL’d (effective) on June 7th with a rotator cuff strain – or triceps soreness – depending which account you wish to believe. He is eligible to return now, but likewise will probably make a rehab start before doing so, which could take place as early as next week.
This news is good, but also makes for a full stack of pitchers. Sure: somebody could be sent back down (Gant and Blair being the most likely candidates), but is this the right thing to do… especially for two of them?
There might soon be another avenue available.
bud norris drawing interest from a number of teams, including marlins. 2.43 era since april. could help chiw, sea, det, etc
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) June 23, 2016
It seems like David Stefan “Bud” Norris has been around the league forever, but he’s actually just 31 years old, having broken into the majors in 2009 with the Astros.
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This season, sure: he’s 2-7 with a 4.69 ERA, but as Heyman points out, it’s certainly appropriate to look beyond the basic numbers.
Yes: in his first 5 starts of 2016, Norris was bad. 22 earned tuns in 25 innings. But after a stint in the bullpen, he’s righted the ship and earned another chance to start.
In those last four starts (all this month): 7 earned runs in 22 innings. That’s a 2.86 ERA… which appears to be good enough for teams to inquire (especially given the state of the starting pitching market in the league).
Norris isn’t going to be a front line guy by any stretch, but he could certainly do either fill-in, back-end, or even long-man roles for any contender looking to eat up some innings. That’s particularly true for a club that has an offense to support him.
Accordingly, his trade value is likely equivalent to that of Kelly Johnson, who brought back a relief pitcher with some interesting possible upside. With multiple teams asking, that could happen relatively soon.
So it’s not surprising that interest is out there… and given Atlanta’s need to make a space for youngsters, I expect he could be moved by the end of June.