At the start of this offseason, Atlanta Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos claimed that the luxury tax would not keep him from making moves on the free-agent market. And after seeing Max Fried and Charlie Morton walk this winter, fans expected some big moves to address the newfound holes in the team's starting rotation
Instead, Anthopoulos remained idle for the most part this offseason aside from acquiring outfielder Jurickson Profar. Now, with spring training about to get underway, the need for reliable starting pitching remains for the Braves — and they will need to find solutions internally as the free agency and trade markets have largely dried up.
With flamethrower Spencer Strider still recovering from injury, Brian Snitker will likely have the following four pitchers in his Opening Day rotation: Chris Sale, Reynaldo Lopez, Grant Holmes and Spencer Schwellenbach. The fifth spot remains a question mark. Let's take a look at three individuals who could earn the right to take the mound every five days for Atlanta to start the regular season.
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3. Ian Anderson
According to multiple sources, Anderson is the one who is expected to take over the last rotation spot for the Braves to start the season. Anderson has not pitched in the big leagues since 2022 due to injury and other circumstances, but he does have 52 career MLB starts under his belt. The other options Atlanta has are less experienced, which could be a factor in this decision.
Anderson has a low-90s fastball but relies on his changeup to get outs. By no means do Anderson's career numbers turn heads, but his ability to throw strikes and pitch to contact could play into exactly what the Braves are looking for in their No. 5 starter.
2. AJ Smith-Shawver
Smith-Shawver who is just 22 years of age has gotten his feet wet over the last two seasons, appearing in a combined seven big-league games (6 of those starts) with a 1-0 record with a 3.64 ERA. The electric young righty can tend to have command issues, which has been the primary reason he has not been able to find a home in the Majors quite yet. In 29.2 innings of work, Smith-Shawver has issued 13 free passes.
If he can stay in the zone more consistently, his stuff is more than good enough to get hitters out. Spring training could be his time to shine and prove he can make adjustments well enough to take a starting role in 2025.
1. Bryce Elder
At this point, it kind of feels like Elder is running out of opportunites. The 25-year-old right hander has bounced back and forth from the Minors to the big leagues over the last three seasons. In 2023, Elder made the All-Star Game after posting an impressive first half of the season but fell off after the break and really hasn't recovered ever since.
In 10 starts in the Show last year, Elder went 2-5 with a 6.52 ERA. However, his Minor League numbers were far more impressive (10-6, 3.73 ERA). If Elder is able to find a way to revive his first-half self from 2023 or even translate his success from Triple-A to MLB, he could earn himself one more chance with the Braves and take the starting pitching vacancy and run with it.