After an otherworldly spring training, Didier Fuentes was given another shot at being a member of the Atlanta Braves‘ pitching staff. He pitched four innings of one-run ball in relief, allowing two hits and a walk while striking out four.
Better yet, he was able to give the bullpen the day off. It doesn’t hurt that they only needed two pitchers to get through a game early in the year, particularly in a losing effort.
“He’s got really good stuff,” Braves starting pitcher Grant Holmes said after the game. “To be his age, really good composure from last year to this year. It’s like he’s two different pitchers, and I feel like he has a really bright future.”
Manager Walt Weiss said after the game that Fuentes is starting out in the bullpen because he’s not fully stretched out to be a starter. The goal is to use him in a way that gives the bullpen a break while he gets closer to a starter’s workload.
He led off his season debut with two perfect innings, while striking out three. He got into some trouble during his third inning of work, but he managed to limit the damage to one run. He bounced back with a scoreless night to wrap up the day.
That third inning of work may have been more important than the ones where he was mowing down hitters. Last season, things got out of hand in a hurry. This time around, he worked himself out of trouble.
His fastball was mainly sitting in the mid-90s, but it was topping out at 97 mph. He went heavy on the fastball, but mixed in the splitter and slider at a decent rate each. Seeing more of the splitter in particular was a promising sign that he is making better use of his secondary pitches.
“The fastball’s always been big, but the secondary stuff is where I think he’s really stepped it up, with a breaking ball and the splitter change,” Weiss said.
The best way to descibe his return to the majors as encouraging. It’s one outing, and it came in relief. However, it’s looking like it could make for an effective way to ease him into the big leagues.
Fuentes didn’t get on the mound during spring training until a couple of weeks in, but once he did, he made noise from the jump. Overall, he finished with a 0.66 ERA, a 0.22 WHIP and 18 strikeouts over 13 2/3 innings. At one point, he retired 27 consecutive batters.
It would have been understandable if they had started him off in Triple-A after how last season unfolded. It could have been seen as erring on the side of caution. However, they gave the hot hand another chance, and he returned the favor with his first, truly strong performance in the majors.
The Braves stay at home to start the workweek as they host the Athletics to start a three-game series on Monday. Bryce Elder is on the mound for a 7:15 p.m. first pitch.
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