While it was lost because the Atlanta Braves offense failed to show up on Tuesday, Grant Holmes was pretty awesome yet again. Holmes put up six scoreless innings for the Braves with 10 strikeouts against just three hits and three walks. While not a traditionally "perfect" start per se, he gave the Braves a very good chance to win the game that the offense (and bullpen to a lesser extent) squandered.
Ever since the Braves showed their strong affection for Holmes before the season started, there has been a healthy amount of skepticism about him and whether or not Holmes' success was ever going to be sustainable. In a lot of ways, how weird Holmes' season has been only added to the confusion as to what to expect from him going forward.
However, after a really strong run lately, it is probably time for the Holmes skeptics (present company included) to accept that he may be the real deal.
Grant Holmes has earned Braves fans trust...at least for now
Through the middle of May, Holmes was pretty inconsistent in his starts and there were some real duds thrown in there. Walks have been a consistent problem all year long and there was a lot of hard contact being given up. In a lot of ways, Holmes' approach was a blend of being "effectively wild" and getting a bit lucky on balls in play.
However, Holmes seems to be settling into his role in the rotation more lately. Over his last four starts, Holmes has posted a 1.57 ERA and (importantly) a 2.48 FIP, the latter of which lends some credence to the idea that he isn't relying on batted ball luck anymore. His strikeout numbers in particular have been stellar including his dominant 15 strikeout performance that the Braves still found a way to lose by nine runs.
Are walks still a concern with Holmes? Yes, they are. Even during this most recent run of success he has had, Holmes still walked 13 batters in 23 innings of work and that does not feel sustainable. However, the guy with the best hair on the Braves (especially with Dansby Swanson gone) just keeps making it work and should be trusted until he proves he shouldn't be.