RADIO
The Braves apparently believe they have enough starting pitching help for the upcoming campaign and have dealt right-hander David Hale as a result, along with minor league relief pitcher Gus Schlosser, sending them to the Rockies for minor league catchers Jose Briceno and Chris O’Dowd.
Entering 2015, Hale figured to be one of the top candidates for the No. 5 spot in the Atlanta rotation, and most likely would already have a guaranteed spot in there if he was given more run as a starter a year ago. After all, when he first debuted in 2013, he did so by making two starts for the club, and was actually quite phenomenal in those outings, going 1-0 with a 0.82 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 11 innings while racking up 14 strikeouts compared to just one walk.
In 2014, Hale was used mostly as a reliever, however, and pitched in 45 games overall, leading him to finish 4-5 with a 3.30 ERA. He also made six spot starts in the process, and in those outings, he was 2-1 with a 2.45 ERA and 1.30 WHIP, while opponents hit just .225 off the 27-year-old Georgia native. Without him in the competition, the Braves appear to be content with the likes of Eric Stults, Wandy Rodriguez, Chien-Ming Wang, and youngster Michael Foltynewicz -- all newcomers to Atlanta -- battling it out for the final spot on the pitching staff. Hale, meanwhile, has a good chance at cracking Colorado’s rotation.
The Rockies are also getting Schlosser, who made his Major League debut last year and ended up pitching in 15 games, but to the tune of a 7.64 ERA and 1.64 WHIP, so he’s more likely ticketed to the minors to begin his 2015 campaign.
The Braves’ haul of Briceno and O’Dowd gives them fine depth at the catcher position in the minor leagues. Briceno is said to be the more valuable of the two, coming off a year where he hit .283/.336/.476 for Low-A Asheville and threw out 44 percent of baserunners from behind the plate. O’Dowd made it to Tulsa in Double-A by the end of last year, and slashed .269/.355/.321 there in 39 games, totaling 134 at-bats.
