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3 Atlanta Braves players that disappointed us in 2019

By Josh Mathews

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MAY 08: A.J. Minter #33 of the Atlanta Braves makes a late throw to first base, on a infield hit from Corey Seager #5 of the Los Angeles Dodgers scoring Justin Turner #10 for a 6-4 lead, during the seventh inning at Dodger Stadium on May 08, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MAY 08: A.J. Minter #33 of the Atlanta Braves makes a late throw to first base, on a infield hit from Corey Seager #5 of the Los Angeles Dodgers scoring Justin Turner #10 for a 6-4 lead, during the seventh inning at Dodger Stadium on May 08, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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PHOENIX, AZ – SEPTEMBER 09: Chad Sobotka #61 of the Atlanta Braves pitches against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the sixth inning of an MLB game at Chase Field on September 9, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Ralph Freso/Getty Images)
PHOENIX, AZ – SEPTEMBER 09: Chad Sobotka #61 of the Atlanta Braves pitches against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the sixth inning of an MLB game at Chase Field on September 9, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Ralph Freso/Getty Images) /

A.J. Minter/Chad Sobotka

I am not saying that both A.J. Minter and Chad Sobotka’s careers are shot or that they are doomed to be designated for assignment or released, or that they’ll spend the rest of their lives in the bus league.

Actually, I think the long term prospects for both could actually be quite the opposite.

However, after showing flashes of brilliance in 2018, both pitchers seemingly fell flat on their faces in 2019.

Two young arms that showed great potential just didn’t do much of anything in their sophomore seasons. Sure, there were flashes, but the numbers speak for themselves.

A.J. Minter: 36G, 3-4 record, 7.06 ERA, 5 SV, 29.1 IP, 36H, 23BB, 35K.

Chad Sobotka: 32G, 0-0 record, 6.23 ERA, 0 SV, 29 IP, 28H, 19BB, 38K.

Going into advanced stats, Minter’s FIP of 4.61 suggests he may have been a bit unlucky, but it doesn’t dismiss him from being bad.

Sobotka’s FIP is sitting at 5.56, which means he essentially got what he deserved based off how he pitched in terms of being beaten up by opposing offenses.

Here, you have to think about the what-ifs.

If one of these guys stepped up and made the leap towards bullpen ace, maybe we wouldn’t have had to spend the $14 million to get Mark Melancon at the trade deadline.

Maybe we don’t trade Kolby Allard to the Texas Rangers to get Chris Martin, or maybe we don’t go out and trade Joey Wentz for Shane Greene.

While I have to admit that we needed a reliever, maybe two, even if these guys performed. In my mind, there’s little doubt that one of them performing would have saved a move or two.

Both failed for different reasons in 2019.

For Sobotka, his lack of command allowed him to be more hittable, missing in bad spots. He had his share of walks, for sure.

As for Minter, he allowed so many base runners, that when a hitter did make him pay for a mistake, it typically wasn’t a solo home run.

In the same number of innings, Minter allowed 12 more base runners via hits and walks than Sobotka.

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