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Atlanta Braves: Mike Soroka will progress – not regress – in 2020

By Seth Carter

MIAMI, FL - MAY 04: Mike Soroka #40 of the Atlanta Braves celebrates with teammates after leaving the game in the eighth inning against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park on May 4, 2019 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images)
MIAMI, FL - MAY 04: Mike Soroka #40 of the Atlanta Braves celebrates with teammates after leaving the game in the eighth inning against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park on May 4, 2019 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /
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Adam Wainwright exits his pitcher’s duel with Soroka in GM 5 against the Braves (Photo by Scott Kane/Getty Images) /

Soroka’s home-road splits

After the game, Wainwright commented from a batter’s perspective,

"“He was as nasty as any pitcher I’ve faced in the postseason. Twenty-two years old, out there pitching on the big stage at a visiting park with 50,000 people cheering against you and very tough lineup on our side. I was very impressed. I can’t be more impressed, actually.”"

Neither can we, Adam.

The Braves saved Soroka for Game 3 of the NLDS for a couple of reasons. One, they had confidence in Dallas Keuchel and Mike Foltynewicz (who had been lights as of the last month) and Soroka’s home/road splits.

At home, Soroka had an ERA of 4.14 with opposing hitters slashing .275/.322/.420 against him. On the road, he pitched in 22.2 more innings than at home and posted a .205/.261/.273 slash line. He posted a 1.55 ERA in more innings on the road. He was lights out.

How unlucky was that home split? Soroka had one game last season in which he gave up more than four earned runs, it was June 12th against the Pirates. If you remove that one game, his ERA is back down in the three’s at home.

July 20th he gave up four earned at home against the Nationals (not bad) then bounced back two starts later in Washington with a one-run, seven-inning performance. His moxie led him to a 2.68 ERA on the season.

Despite pitching more innings he gave up half as many doubles as at home, nearly half the earned runs, and five homers (as opposed to nine at home).

The more telling sign from those numbers is how dominant and fearless he was on the road. The kid had ice water in his veins and it showed in St. Louis during Game 3 of the NLDS.

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