Latest news with #AJSmithShawver
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
AJ Smith-Shawver faces Trevor Williams again as Braves face Nationals
After a postponed game last night, the Atlanta Braves will face off against the Washington Nationals in a game where the Braves are once again trying to surpass the .500 mark. AJ Smith-Shawver has been on a heater lately. Since being called back up for his April twenty-ninth start, he has dominated his competition with hitters having a slash line of .141/.232/.188 with a 1.08 ERA and 0.840 WHIP. He has had some fortune with a BABIP of .180 against him, but he has still been impressive. Advertisement Because of the way the schedule has worked out, Smith-Shawver's last start was against the Nationals. He looked like the dominant pitcher the Braves' hoped he would be when they drafted him. With 6.0 innings pitched he only allowed two hits with zero earned runs and struck out six to only two walks. With AJ Smith-Shawver being so early in his career, the Nationals' hitters do not have a large sample size against him. However, they just faced him recently. Luis García Jr. has had the most success against Smith-Shawver with a 1.334 OPS in his three at-bats. No other player on the roster has more than five at-bats against Smith-Shawver. The Nationals will bring Trevor Williams to the mound, who also faced AJ Smith-Shawver when these two teams met this month already. Williams went 4.1 innings where the Braves were able to score three earned runs against him by garnering five hits. On the season Williams currently has a 5.91 ERA and 1.533 WHIP. He expected ERA (xERA) is much lower at 3.62, so it should be pointed out that he has had some poor luck. The Braves' offense has clearly not lived up to expectations, but they were able to score four runs (three earned) against the Nationals the last time they faced Williams which could be enough if they do it again with how Smith-Shawver and the bullpen has been performing recently. Advertisement First pitch is at 6:45 EDT Game Info Game Date/Time: Thursday, May 22, 6:45 p.m. EDT Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, GA TV: FanDuel Sports South, Southeast Streaming: (free) Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan More from
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Braves Dealt Major Pitching Staff Loss on Friday
Braves Dealt Major Pitching Staff Loss on Friday originally appeared on Athlon Sports. On Thursday night at Citizens Bank Park, Braves rookie right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver exited the first game of a doubleheader against the Phillies clutching his right elbow after a comebacker struck his ankle and he felt a 'pop' while delivering a pitch. Advertisement Initial X-rays were negative, but an MRI conducted upon his return to Atlanta confirmed the Braves' worst fears: a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing elbow. The injury announcement came Friday via Mark Bowman, with Smith-Shawver now slated to miss the remainder of the 2025 season as he and the club decide between Tommy John surgery and an internal brace procedure. A 2021 seventh-round draft pick out of Fort Worth, Texas, Smith-Shawver has quickly emerged as one of baseball's most intriguing young arms. He made his major-league debut on June 4, 2023 and earned his first win just 11 days later at age 20, making him the youngest Braves pitcher to notch a victory since Steve Avery in 1990. Advertisement After spending much of 2024 at Triple-A Gwinnett, he returned this spring and delivered the most dominant start of his young career on May 5, hurling eight shutout innings and carrying a no-hit bid into the eighth. Through nine starts this year, he posted a 3-2 record with a 3.86 ERA. Atlanta Braves pitcher AJ Smith-Shawver (32).David Banks-USA TODAY Sports The loss of Smith-Shawver lands amid a pivotal stretch for a Braves club seeking to rebound from a 2024 season that fell short of expectations. Last year, Atlanta finished second in the National League East at 89-73, a mark that clinched a wild-card berth but ended abruptly in a 2-0 sweep at the hands of the San Diego Padres in the NL Wild Card Series. Advertisement In 2025, the Braves entered the season with high hopes but have stumbled out of the gate. As of Friday, they sit at 26-29, third in the NL East and 9.5 games behind the division-leading Phillies. Related: MLB Sends Strong Zach Neto Statement Amid Yankees Series Related: MLB Reveals Exciting Chipper Jones News on Monday This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on May 30, 2025, where it first appeared.
New York Times
3 days ago
- General
- New York Times
As feared, Braves' AJ Smith-Shawver diagnosed with torn UCL
ATLANTA – Hard-throwing Atlanta Braves rookie AJ Smith-Shawver has a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow, as the team feared when he left Thursday's game at Philadelphia after feeling what he said was a pop in the elbow. An MRI revealed the torn UCL and Smith-Shawver will consult with a specialist before he's expected to have season-ending surgery. He will likely require Tommy John surgery to reconstruct the UCL, which would probably require a 12-13 month rehab for a pitcher like Smith-Shawver having the procedure for the first time. Advertisement Assuming he has the surgery right away, he could target a potential return sometime around the All-Star break or a little earlier in 2026. 'It showed a tear, all the imaging,' said Braves manager Brian Snitker, who didn't provide any more specifics. 'So he'll consult with the physicians or doctors and they'll decide what the next step is.' While the newer internal brace procedure is a less invasive surgery that typically has a rehab period that's two to three months shorter than Tommy John, that brace procedure is only an option if the ligament is intact, not with a torn UCL like Smith-Shawver has. Braves teammate Spencer Strider, who had Tommy John surgery while in college in 2019, just returned last month from a 12-month rehab for an internal brace procedure he had to repair his damaged UCL in April 2024. But Strider didn't have a torn ligament, he had bone fragments that had become embedded in the ligament. The Braves didn't say that Smith-Shawver would definitely have Tommy John surgery, but the only other option presumably would be to rehab without surgery. That might be considered by an aging pitcher near the end of his career, one who doesn't want to rehab for a full year-plus, but it's exceedingly rare among young pitchers — Smith-Shawver is 22 — because it's viewed as putting off the inevitable, especially for a hard-throwing pitcher like Smith-Shawver. Smith-Shawver was hit in the back of his right foot by a line drive off the bat of Bryson Stott with one out in the third inning Thursday at Philadelphia, and Snitker and a team trainer went to the mound to check on him. After telling them he was fine to continue, he threw four pitches — including three fastballs at 94-96 mph on a day when he had a career-high 97.1 average — to Trea Turner, who flied out on a 380-foot line drive. He threw 10 pitches at 98.2 mph or above, including one at 99.6, the second-hardest of his career. Advertisement It was after the Turner out that Snitker, pitching coach Rick Kranitz and a team trainer went back out to check on Smith-Shawver, after Strider had noticed Smith-Shawver shaking out his arm following his last two pitches. Smith-Shawver wanted to continue, but when he told Snitker he felt a pop, his day was over. And so was his season.
Washington Post
3 days ago
- Health
- Washington Post
Braves RHP AJ Smith-Shawver diagnosed with torn UCL, placed on 60-day injured list
ATLANTA — Atlanta Braves rookie right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver has a torn UCL in his pitching elbow, the team said Friday. Smith-Shawver left Thursday's 5–4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies in a doubleheader opener and said he felt a 'pop.' The 22-year-old was initially placed on the 15-day injured list before being moved to the 60-day IL on Friday.
Associated Press
3 days ago
- General
- Associated Press
Braves RHP AJ Smith-Shawver diagnosed with torn UCL, placed on 60-day injured list
ATLANTA (AP) — Atlanta Braves rookie right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver has a torn UCL in his pitching elbow, the team said Friday. Smith-Shawver left Thursday's 5–4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies in a doubleheader opener and said he felt a 'pop.' The 22-year-old was initially placed on the 15-day injured list before being moved to the 60-day IL on Friday. '(His evaluation) showed a tear on his imaging,' Braves manager Brian Snitker said before Atlanta opened a three-game series against Boston. 'He'll consult with the physicians or doctors and they'll decide what the next step is.' Snitker said he didn't know if Smith-Shawver would need Tommy John surgery. On Thursday, Smith-Shawver appeared to say 'pop' toward Snitker after a third-inning pitch to Trea Turner. He gave up a go-ahead, two-run homer to Rafael Marchán, then took a 96.6 mph line drive off his right ankle on a a ball hit by Bryson Stott with one out. Smith-Shawver threw a warmup pitch and stayed in the game, then left after wincing while allowing a flyout to Turner on the fourth pitch of the at-bat. Smith-Shawver is 3-2 with a 3.86 ERA in nine starts and 44 1/3 innings, striking out 42 and walking 21. 'It's tough for all (young pitchers) when it happens,' Snitker said. 'Especially where he was, feeling good about himself and throwing good.' ___ AP MLB:
