The Braves took heat at the Aug. 3 trade deadline for not doing more with the premium prospect haul they had built up, especially when it came to upgrading the rotation. But Tyler Mahle, the only starter Atlanta added, is turning that decision into a much better-looking bet.
At the time of the trade from the San Francisco Giants, Mahle carried a 5.13 ERA. Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos said the team saw something underneath that number.
“I know on the surface you look at the ERA and say, ‘Well?’” Anthopoulos said after acquiring Mahle. “Obviously, we’re trying to dig a little further into some of those things, and we think what he’s done of late, there’s still some room for improvement with some other tweaks.”
The Braves have seen exactly what they were looking for since then. Mahle has posted a 1.48 ERA after the deadline, the third-best mark in MLB, while striking out 32 and walking only five. Atlanta has won three of the five games he has started.
That surge matters now more than ever, with the Braves heading into a key stretch that includes back-to-back weekend series against the Philadelphia Phillies, who are four games back in the National League East. Atlanta is leaning into Mahle’s recent run, and the formula has been pretty clear: simplify the mix and let the best pitches carry the load.
“He added some pitches in San Francisco, which I don’t think is a bad plan, but it didn’t work for him,” Braves pitching coach Jeremy Hefner said. “Once he came back from the hamstring injury, he went back to who he is: four-seam cutter and splitter.”
Before a left hamstring strain sidelined him on May 29, Mahle was throwing his slider 9.7 percent of the time as a chase pitch. The problem was that hitters weren’t biting. A full 53.3 percent of those sliders went for balls, and the pitch produced just 13 whiffs on 129 offerings.
When he returned from the injury on June 24, the adjustment was obvious. Mahle scrapped the sinker and cut the slider down to 3.3 percent.
The four-seam fastball became the centerpiece. Opponents are batting .218 against it this season, and it has produced a 27.7 strikeout percentage.
The velocity is modest - 92.7 mph on average, in the 23rd percentile - but the command has made it play.
“That’s one thing he does really well,” catcher Sean Murphy said about Mahle’s fastball command. “When you can do that, you can sequence and you can do all sorts of things - pitch to weaknesses and pitch to strengths. He has a lot of options when he’s out there.”
The splitter has become even more important since Mahle came back, jumping to a 31.2 percent usage rate from 24.6 percent before the injury. That pitch was especially sharp in his latest start, Sunday against the Colorado Rockies, when he worked 6 2/3 innings, gave up one run on five hits, didn’t walk anyone and matched his season high with nine strikeouts.
Mahle also limited Colorado to two hits on the splitter. Since July 21, he has held hitters to a .192 average against that pitch in eight starts, a major improvement from the .277 average opponents posted against it in his first 15 starts of the season.
“I’ve been sticking with what’s working,” Mahle said. “Early in the season, I was getting punished on my third- and fourth-best pitches. We’re just picking our spots to throw those.”
If this version of Mahle holds, the Braves may have their strongest Game 2 playoff option. But the test is only getting tougher. His next starts could come against the Tampa Bay Rays, who own the best record in the American League, and the NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs.
Mahle sounds ready for it.
“I’m super excited to play on a team (that) is good - probably the best team I’ve ever been a part of,” Mahle said. “I’m happy that I can come in and hit the ground running and not miss a beat with where this team was at already. So, just glad I can just fit in and do my part.”
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