With now four of the Braves top starters on the IL for the foreseeable future and the offense performing like a bottom-five lineup, Atlanta’s bullpen feels like the club’s biggest strength, something nobody could have predicted at the beginning of the season.
Not only has the current group mostly performed well of late, but there are a slew of guys in Gwinnett that could significantly bolster the bullpen when needed over the final three months.
Wander Suero
Suero is a six-year MLB veteran with a career 4.75 ERA over 191 appearances. Not exactly sexy, but his 3.89 FIP is much more encouraging and he’s got some pretty good strikeout numbers.
This season, Suero has been downright electric for the Stripers, boasting a 0.85 ERA over 30 appearances with 11 saves. He’s striking out 11.7 batters per nine innings and walking just 2.8 per nine, resulting in a very impressive 4.10 K/BB ratio.
Suero is far from the most exciting name on this list, but he looks like he could undoubtedly play a role in Atlanta at some point if needed.
Hayden Harris
From a numbers perspective, Hayden Harris is one of the most impressive prospect relievers you’ll find.
He currently boasts a 0.60 ERA over 25 appearances between AA-AAA, including a perfect 0.00 mark for AAA Gwinnett.
At 26-years-old, it’s about time Harris makes his MLB debut. It wouldn’t be shocking if that happens sooner rather than later.
Jhancarlos Lara
From a stuff perspective, there might not be a more intriguing arm in the entire Braves organization than Jhancarlos Lara.
The numbers this year between AA-AAA are horrendous. Lara owns a 9.19 ERA over 20 appearances; however, that doesn’t tell the entire story. The Braves recently moved him into a full-time relief role and promoted him to Gwinnett.
Things didn’t immediately get better after that, but in his last five appearances (six innings), Lara has allowed just one hit and no runs with 10 punchouts. He seems to finally be figuring it out, and given his repertoire — 101 MPH fastball with a nasty wipeout slider — the upside is immense.
Larry Radloff/Icon Sportswire
