Atlanta Braves vs. Minnesota Twins - News - March 12, 2021

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Slated to debut Monday Happ will make his spring debut Monday against Atlanta, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Impact Happ missed the first week of spring training after testing positive for COVID-19, but he recently threw two innings of batting practice and will pitch in his first Grapefruit League game Monday. Although he's being brought along slowly to begin camp, the Twins haven't indicated that he's in danger of missing Opening Day.

MARCH 13, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Sharp to begin spring Smith has tossed two perfect innings while striking out three batters in his first two appearances this spring.

Impact The 31-year-old is expected to begin the season as Atlanta's primary closer following the departure of Mark Melancon, despite the fact that Smith didn't record a save in 2020. Top southpaws often have a hard time holding down closer jobs as they're needed earlier in the game in high-leverage spots, but Smith's handedness is less of an issue in a bullpen that features two other tough lefties in A.J. Minter and Tyler Matzek. Chris Martin could also factor into the ninth-inning mix, but Smith has the pedigree after racking up 48 saves for the Giants in 2018-19. His 114:25 K:BB in 81.1 innings over the last two seasons is impressive, but he'll need to keep the ball in the park after serving up 17 homers over that stretch.

MARCH 13, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Being brought along slowly Martin does not have a timetable to make his Grapefruit League debut this spring, but he's healthy and getting regular work on the back fields for Atlanta, Gabriel Burns of The Atl...

Impact Martin heads into 2021 as the top right-handed option in a bullpen that features three tough lefties in Will Smith, A.J. Minter and Tyler Matzek. Smith is widely expected to open the season as the primary closer, but Martin's high-leverage role could see him pick up the occasional save along with his holds depending on who's coming to the plate for the opposition in the ninth inning. Since joining Atlanta at the trade deadline in 2019, the 34-year-old has 12 holds and one save in 39 appearances while posting a dazzling 42:4 K:BB over 35.2 innings.

MARCH 13, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Remains in hunt for rotation spot Ynoa threw three scoreless innings Friday against the Twins before running into trouble in the fourth and getting lifted, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports. "The first three innings w...

Impact Superficially, Ynoa's 9.00 ERA and 1.57 WHIP over three appearances (two starts) and seven innings this spring wouldn't seem to mark him as a candidate to break camp on the big-league roster. However, all the damage against him occurred either in his final frame of the day as fatigue set in, or via the next pitcher up allowing inherited runners to score. Ynoa has also piled up an impressive 12 strikeouts. "I don't know where he's going to fit," Snitker said. "We're continuing to get him stretched out. He's absolutely right in the mix with everybody." Atlanta will likely need to fill a rotation spot to begin the season until Mike Soroka (Achilles) is ready, and Ynoa is battling Bryse Wilson and Kyle Wright for that vacancy. Whoever falls short could either head to Triple-A to stay stretched out, or handle a long relief role in the big-league bullpen.

MARCH 13, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Set for larger role Minter is expected to handle a high-leverage role this season, Gabriel Burns of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Impact The southpaw bounced back from a brutal 2019 to post a 0.83 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 27.2 percent strikeout rate across 21.2 innings last year as he got his career back on track. Fellow lefty Will Smith is the likely closer for Atlanta, and Chris Martin is the top right-handed option in the team's late-inning mix, but Minter should still find himself working in plenty of high-leverage spots if he can at least maintain the improvements he showed with his control and command. He recorded a career-high 12 holds in 2018, but Minter could blow past that figure in 2021.

MARCH 13, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Throwing sim game Saturday Soroka (Achilles) will throw in a simulated game Saturday, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

Impact Soroka threw two innings during a simulated game Sunday, and he'll have another throwing session less than a week later. The right-hander has progressed well in his recovery from a torn Achilles tendon, but Atlanta still hasn't provided a timetable for his return.

MARCH 13, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

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Atlanta Braves vs. Minnesota Twins - News: Mar 12, 2021

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