Braves Postseason MVP Activates Illness.
This offseason, the Atlanta Braves put a lot of effort into strengthening their bullpen.
The focus is on the big moves: Atlanta spent a total of $40.25 million to re-sign Joe Jiménez and Pierce Johnson to multi-year contracts this winter, and they acquired lefty Aaron Bummer in a five-player trade with the Chicago White Sox.(Johnson is presently experiencing inflammation in his elbow and is listed as injured.)
However, there will be another, less publicized trade purchase involved. The 2021 NLCS hero, reliever Tyler Matzek, has been on to the disabled list by the Braves due to discomfort in his elbow.
Ray Kerr, who is been called up from AAA Gwinnett, will take his place both in the bullpen and on the active roster.
As the centerpiece of an offseason trade that saw the Braves take on DH Matt Carpenter’s payroll before releasing him, Kerr, 29, was acquired from the San Diego Padres.
Kerr has a 4.50 ERA and is 0-1 in his nine outings this season for Gwinnett, including one start.
In fourteen innings, he has struck out twenty-two, walked five, given up five home runs, and had three saves.
Matzek’s elbow pain may have contributed to his difficulty recovering from Tommy John surgery in late 2022.
Matzek’s fastball velocity has been around 94 mph after averaging 96.0 mph in 2021, 2022, and thus far this season. His numbers have also declined, with a 9.90 ERA in 10 appearances, eleven earned runs in just ten innings, three walks, and ten strikeouts.
Thus far, he has thrown two wild pitches and given up three home runs, enough for an ERA+ of only 43 (as opposed to 169 in 2021).
Matzek has given up three home runs, all of which have come off fastballs, and opponents are hitting.414 with a.793 slugging percentage on the field (in contrast to his slider, which gives up a.250 batting average and a.313 slugging percentage).
In 2024, batters have swung and missed just 12.9% of the time while facing fastballs; in 2021, that number was 22.6%.
Given that Matzek’s predicted batting average off the fastball is still.379 and his expected slugging percentage is.786, it seems unlikely that this was simply terrible luck for him.
He may return as early as May 20th because Atlanta backdated the trade to May 5.
Leave a Reply