Didier Fuentes is doing his best to make his case for the Opening Day roster, as he is lighting up the radar gun and opposing hitters this spring. He has currently pitched 9.0 scoreless innings with 17(!!!) strikeouts and 0 walks, which is just preposterous stuff even in a small sample against varied levels of competition. He is relying heavily on his four-seam fastball, which has been sitting 96-97, with his slider as his clear second pitch and a few sinkers mixed in to round out his arsenal. An argument could certainly be made on merit for carrying him on the Opening Day roster as a starter or bullpen option, but there is another argument for giving him a little time to continue refining those secondary pitches before he is inevitably needed at the major league level later this season. That combination of stuff and command has Didier with a lethal look about him though. It will be interesting to see what the front office decides, as these roster decisions are rapidly approaching.
Braves News
Fuentes’ 4.0 inning, 8 strikeout performance headlined an otherwise quiet Spring Training game on Wednesday against the Phillies.
The Braves finalized their Spring Breakout roster, cutting many interesting pitchers from a staff led by Owen Murphy.
BravesVision formally announced their broadcast crew, which is largely the same crew that already existed for the local broadcast, with Paul Byrd returning to supplement the sideline coverage and Charlie Culberson joining the post-game crew.
MLB News
Blue Jays beleaguered starter Jose Berrios has a stress fracture in his elbow and will miss Opening Day.
The Reds are carrying top pitching prospects and former Wake Forest stars Chase Burns and Rhett Lowder on their Opening Day roster.
Paul DePodesta discussed his plans to turn around the Rockies with ESPN.
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