ATLANTA — AJ Smith-Shawver remained targeted when he was demoted three weeks in the past, and he remained composed after shedding his no-hit bid within the eighth inning of the Braves’ 4-0 win over the Reds on Monday night time at Truist Park.
The 22-year-old hurler’s encouraging reactions to those occasions give the Braves additional cause to be enthusiastic about what he might present them far past the rest of this season.
“These are huge steps mentally for him,” Braves supervisor Brian Snitker mentioned. “These are the make-up belongings you search for in a younger man, how he handles adversity. He’s been dealt rather a lot in a quick Main League profession.”
Lower than 5 full calendar years since he gave pitching one other attempt with a journey ball staff, Smith-Shawver got here inside six outs of doing what no Braves pitcher has achieved in additional than 30 years. His no-hit bid ended with Santiago Espinal’s eighth-inning single.
However this was nonetheless an evening to recollect for the previous Braves high prospect, who allowed simply the one hit and 4 walks throughout his 99-pitch, eight-inning effort. He walked off the sector to a loud applause from a house crowd that has pulled for him going again to 2023, when he made his MLB debut at simply 20 years previous.
“That’s what you dream of as a child, going on the market and taking part in the sport that you just love,” Smith-Shawver mentioned. “I’m simply making an attempt to take all of it in proper now.”
Smith-Shawver joined the Nationals’ Mitchell Parker as the one pitchers who’ve allowed one hit or fewer over at the least eight scoreless innings this 12 months. The newest Braves pitcher to do that had been Julio Teheran, who threw a one-hit shutout towards the Mets on June 19, 2016.
“This isn’t a simple recreation by any means,” Braves first baseman Matt Olson mentioned. “It’s onerous to get to the massive leagues and it’s even tougher to remain up right here. Loads of guys must climate the storm and undergo the ups and downs. [Smith-Shawver] has at all times had a superb angle anytime he has gone down or come again up.”
Snitker known as Smith-Shawver into his workplace on April 13 and knowledgeable him he was being optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett. On Monday night time, he smiled extensively as he congratulated the younger hurler and let him know he would have doubtless let him throw roughly 120 pitches had the no-hit bid stayed alive.
The Braves haven’t had a no-hitter since Kent Mercker threw one at Dodger Stadium on April 8, 1994. The one groups with an extended drought are the Royals (1991), Blue Jays (1990) and Guardians (1981).
“I simply preserve saying he is studying on the job,” Snitker mentioned. “This can be a actually nice expertise, studying expertise for him tonight. I do not know that he is ever touched the eighth inning.”
Smith-Shawver had by no means pitched into the seventh inning in any of his earlier 10 huge league begins. He additionally had by no means accomplished greater than seven innings within the Minors and he reached that time simply twice. So, this was certainly his first journey into the eighth inning, doubtless at any stage, if you account for the actual fact he didn’t even pitch in highschool earlier than his 2021 senior season.
“Once you lookup on the board and also you see no hits, you need to make that play for him,” Braves shortstop Nick Allen mentioned. “You need to get to every part.”
Allen made two unimaginable performs throughout the first three innings and Smith-Shawver saved the Reds off steadiness with a full of life four-seam fastball and an efficient splitter, amongst others. The Braves starter pitched round two first-inning walks and consecutive two-out walks within the fourth. He had retired 10 straight batters earlier than Espinal slapped his single up the center.
“I began to note [the no-hitter] within the fifth, and folks actually began to get away from me within the sixth,” Smith-Shawver mentioned. “I used to be like, OK, that is actual. You go on the market and simply attempt to execute pitches. I needed to do what I had been doing, however with a little bit extra adrenaline.”
The Braves fast-tracked Smith-Shawver from Excessive-A to the massive leagues throughout the first two months of the 2023 season. He made 5 begins (six video games) for the Braves within the common season that 12 months and had a reduction look in entrance of a raucous Philadelphia crowd throughout the 2023 NL Division Collection. He made only one huge league look throughout final 12 months’s common season. However accidents led to him being requested to start out Recreation 1 of the Wild Card Collection in San Diego with about six hours’ discover.
Now, three weeks after being demoted, it appears to be like like he is able to keep.
“I’m pleased with how I dealt with the state of affairs and the way I went about my enterprise,” Smith-Shawver mentioned. “I really feel that’s crucial half.”
