How long Michael Soroka stays with Triple-A Gwinnett and pitches for the Stripers is dependent on a lot of factors, some of these factors he can control, and some he can’t.
The Morning Shift laid out what factors will impact just how long Soroka lasts in a Stripers uniform.
“It’s dependent on how well Soroka goes down there and finds his location," Beau Morgan said. "It depends on how good, if they make a start with AJ Smith-Shawver which it looks like they will maybe Thursday or Friday, probably Friday, how well he pitches in that debut.”
Beau finishes by saying “It depends on how well that Shuster continues to pitch right? It just is dependent on these other things.”
If Smith-Shawver does in fact get a start, or maybe even multiple starts and looks good as a starting pitcher, then there will be no need to rush Soroka back to the big leagues, especially if his struggles continue.
However, if any Braves rookie, Smith-Shawver, Shuster, or Dylan Dodd start to struggle as a starter and Soroka has one or two quality starts in Gwinnett, then Michael could be back up to Atlanta and pitching for the Braves again sooner rather than later.
Smith-Shawver could be moved back to the bullpen or he and Soroka may swap places, and the same goes for Shuster and Dodd, and if Smith-Shawver, Dodd, Shuster, and Soroka all struggle, then the Braves will have some tough decisions on their hands.
Now, even though there are all of these factors, some internal and some external, Soroka just needs to focus on what he can control, focus on getting his mechanics and location right, and just focus on getting outs and making quality starts, and if he does that we will see number 40 back in Atlanta sooner rather than later.