Hours before his latest appearance was scratched from his start. The Atlanta Braves decided it would be best to follow an opener.
With his track record out of the bullpen, it didn’t hurt to see if it would help. The results that were hoped for were delivered.
In the bulk guy role, Ritchie tossed 4 1/3 innings of one-run ball, holding the St. Louis Cardinals to one hit and two walks while striking out a pair of hitters. Both of those strikeouts came on the curveball.
The lone run allowed was a runner left on base at the time of being pulled. The runner scored when José Fermín singled in two off Didier Fuentes.
He only induced four whiffs, but he did a solid job folling hitters in the sense that he had 17 called strikes. These accounted for 44% of the strikes called in his favor.
Ritchie is one of the latest examples of a young pitcher getting action as a reliever to solid results. When pitching in this role, he has a 0.65 ERA, one run allowed in 13 2/3 innings of work. By comparison, he has a 5.55 ERA in seven starts.
When it works, it works, and the Braves should ride this forumula for a long as they can. Normally, I’m not an advocate for an opener, and Walt Weiss typically has his reservations about it. In this situation, it’s understandable.
The Braves’ prospect has shown he can be succesful as a long reliever. He can stay stretched out and slowed work his way to be a starting pitcher through this avenue.
Preserving his current pitch count is key because they’ve already moved Didier Fuentes to a regular relief role this season. The move has been a raging success, but they need options to turn to for innings.
Ritchie can still provide those innings. He just isn’t ready to be coming out for the first inning.
The Braves picked up a 4-3 win over the Cardinals on Sunday to avoid the sweep and head into the All-Star break on a high note. The Home Run Deby is set for Monday with the All-Star Game on Tuesday.
Regular season action for the Braves resumes on Friday when they host the Texas Rangers at home. First pitch is set for 7:15 p.m.
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