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3 Takeaways: On Deadline Day, Atlanta Braves win series in extras vs Nationals

By Daniel Rasmussen

WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 31: Josh Donaldson #20 of the Atlanta Braves hits the game winning home run against the Washington Nationals during the tenth inning at Nationals Park on July 31, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 31: Josh Donaldson #20 of the Atlanta Braves hits the game winning home run against the Washington Nationals during the tenth inning at Nationals Park on July 31, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /
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WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 31: Mike Soroka #40 of the Atlanta Braves pitches against the Washington Nationals during the second inning at Nationals Park on July 31, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 31: Mike Soroka #40 of the Atlanta Braves pitches against the Washington Nationals during the second inning at Nationals Park on July 31, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /

2. Mike Soroka was quietly brilliant once again.

In the hullaballoo of Trade Deadline deals, clutch Atlanta hits, and a nearly disastrous bullpen effort, the fact that Mike Soroka was, well, Mike Soroka, shouldn’t go overlooked.

The Canadian right-hander and fresh-faced Braves ace churned out 7 innings in businesslike fashion, holding the hot Nationals lineup to just 1 run during that time.

While he didn’t quite display the swinging strike capability we’ve seen so often from him this year (only 3 Ks on Wednesday), Soroka did induce weak contact to the tune of a 10-4 ground-ball-to-fly-ball out ratio against Washington.

As he’s done so many times in 2019, Soroka mixed and matched with his diverse repertoire of pitches to keep the Washington hitters off-balance.

Soroka, who entered Wednesday’s series finale with the third best ERA in the NL among starters with at least 100 innings, continues to impress in his age-21 season in ways beyond what most thought possible.

Leading up to Wednesday’s deadline, there was lots of speculation as to whether or not the Atlanta Braves would add a starting pitcher to solidify the rotation.

While one might could still question the overall top-to-bottom depth of the Braves’ starters, it would be foolish to doubt Mike Soroka’s place among the top.

He’s firmly established himself as a strong top-of-the-rotation arm to this point, and provides the Braves with the belief that no stage is too big for him, even if it eventually means he gets the ball in Game 1 of an October playoff series.

Based on how he’s performed this year, Mike Soroka is probably just fine with that.

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