ATLANTA -- Braves manager Walt Weiss was asked if AJ Smith-Shawver will be joining the team during a seven-game road trip that begins on Monday.
“We have had some conversations about how he fits in here, in the short-term moving forward,” Weiss said. “It’s just a matter of what our bullpen looks like and what the rotation looks like.”
Weiss answered this question a couple of hours before Grant Holmes struggled in a 10-3 loss to the D-backs on Saturday night at Truist Park. Smith-Shawver’s pending arrival combined with Holmes’ worst start in two months refueled debate about whether the latter should move to the bullpen.
But it’s safe to say, Weiss doesn’t see this option as being up for debate.
“[Holmes] has been throwing the ball really well,” Weiss said. “Everyone is going to have a clunker every now and again, Nobody is immune to that. Grant will be all right.”
Holmes allowed six runs on six hits and three walks over 3 2/3 innings vs. Arizona. His abbreviated effort put a strain on the bullpen to cover 5 1/3 frames. Could this open the door for Smith-Shawver to be brought up to serve as a reliever?
“We haven't had those discussions in depth,” Weiss said. “So yeah, I mean that's an option.”
Holmes entered Saturday having constructed a scoreless six-inning effort in both of his two previous August starts. He had also produced a 2.45 ERA in his past seven starts going back to July 3.
So, he deserves some leeway, right? One bad start shouldn’t remove him from the rotation, right?
Well, the chatter certainly wouldn’t be as loud if there wasn’t anticipation about when Smith-Shawver might arrive and how he might fit.
“If we plug him in to make a start, you shorten the bullpen,” Weiss said. “Those are things we need to think about. But he’s at the point where he’s in play now and he’s a talented arm.”
If Atlanta’s bullpen is taxed again on Sunday, the likelihood of Smith-Shawver making a start before Thursday would likely further decrease.
Once Thursday arrives, Holmes would be available to pitch as a long reliever. But Weiss made it clear he has no intention of moving his veteran right-hander to the bullpen simply because he struggled on Saturday.
A popular question among Braves fans over the past couple of months has been who will be the Game 2 starter in a potential postseason series?
Tyler Mahle has looked like a candidate in the first two starts he has made since being acquired from the Giants. Bryce Elder has enjoyed some long successful stretches and Martin Pérez hasn’t allowed a run over his past 18 innings.
But the most intriguing candidate is Smith-Shawver, who has totaled 4 1/3 innings at the Major League level since undergoing Tommy John surgery in June 2025.
So, why is this 23-year-old hurler the most intriguing candidate? Unlike the other candidates, Smith-Shawver has the prototypical power stuff that has been successful in the postseason.
Smith-Shawver’s four-seamer averaged 97.2 mph during his emergency start against the Mets during the first game of a July 29 doubleheader. His splitter had a 39 percent whiff rate and his curveball a 31.4 percent whiff rate while producing a 3.86 ERA in the nine starts he made before he underwent season-ending elbow surgery last year.
While Smith-Shawver could aid the bullpen, especially with uncertainty surrounding Robert Suarez’s right elbow, there’s also reason to be interested in how he could fare while making regular starts down the stretch.
Will Smith-Shawver join Atlanta’s rotation or bullpen over the next few days? Weiss’ responses indicate this is yet another day-to-day thing.