The back end of the Atlanta Braves pitching staff continues to change every week, as another pitcher is heading back to Triple-A Gwinnett after a brief stop with the big league club.
Left-hander Jared Shuster was optioned down to Triple-A after Wednesday's game against the Minnesota Twins. The move comes after Kolby Allard turned in an impressive start that saw him strike out eight batters over 4.2 innings.
The #Braves optioned LHP Jared Shuster to Triple-A Gwinnett following today’s game.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) June 28, 2023
Shuster has struggled in his rookie year after making the opening-day roster out of Spring Training. The 24-year-old has started nine games for the Braves this year, posting a 5.00 ERA over 45 innings with 25 strikeouts to 22 walks. In his most recent start against the Cincinnati Reds, Shuster pitched 3.2 innings while allowing seven hits and four earned runs.
The timeline for both Max Fried and Kyle Wright to return to the big league rotation remains unclear, which has led to a lot of different names starting over the last two months for the Braves, including Dylan Dodd, AJ Smith-Shawver, and several different relievers for bullpen games throughout the year.
The move to send Shuster back to Gwinnett clears a spot for someone who a lot of people thought would start Wednesday's game after he won International League Player of the Week. Michael Soroka is fresh off a seven-inning complete game for the Stripers, where he struck out nine batters and allowed just one hit. Soroka struggled in his first two starts back at the major league level earlier in June but has been putting up solid numbers during his stint in Triple-A.
Allard's impressive outing on Wednesday might have ended up buying him another start, and for the time being, sending Jared Shuster back to Gwinnett. Shuster will likely be back with the major league club when the need arises before Wright and Fried are back to full strength.