AJ Smith-Shawver Matures on the Mound as Drake Baldwin Continues to Rake in Braves Series Win

Braves secure the series win to get back to .500

Video Courtesy of: Atlanta Braves

Atlanta, fresh off last night’s game three loss where the bullpen collapsed after a strong outing from Bryce Elder, returned to wrap up the four-game set against Washington. AJ Smith-Shawver got the ball today, and he has quietly become one of the more reliable arms in Atlanta’s rotation. Since returning from Gwinnett, the right-hander has looked more composed with each outing, showing real signs of growth and some dominance to match. This would be another chance for a Braves series win. Let's get into the details.

Smith-Shawver faced a tough task right out of the gate in CJ Abrams, who homered in the first inning a couple of nights ago, and singled last night to start. But today, Abrams saw three pitches and was walking back to the dugout. Abrams would struggle against Smith-Shawver. After grazing Amed Rosario’s jersey with a splitter that rode up and in, AJ needed just 10 pitches to get out of the inning. He finished it off by striking out top prospect James Wood on a wicked splitter that had him chasing. That pitch mix was sharp early.

Drake Baldwin was slotted second in the order today, a continued sign of the growing trust in his bat. The Braves went three up, three down in the first, but Baldwin’s first pitch swing stood out. Even though it ended in an out, the aggressive approach was refreshing. With the amount of hittable pitches Atlanta has watched go by this year, it’s hard to argue with jumping on one.

The second inning brought the first real trouble for Smith-Shawver. Nathaniel Lowe drew a leadoff walk, but AJ struck back by getting Josh Bell swinging. Then came the bad luck. A sharp comebacker off the bat of Alex Call ricocheted off AJ’s glove and into the outfield, turning into a double. Just like that, runners were on second and third with one out. A walk to José Tena loaded the bases, but after a quick mound visit from pitching coach Rick Kranitz, Smith-Shawver got Jacob Young to ground into a tailor-made 6-4-3 double play. That was a huge moment, a jam that easily could have flipped the game early, but instead Atlanta escaped clean.

Smith-Shawver later reflected on the high-pressure moment and what got him through it: “Yeah, I mean, it's, you hate being in those situations, but it's nice to just trust your stuff, know how you're moving and what you need to do to get out of it and that you're always a pitch away. Yeah, but it's it's been lucky I've had some really good defense and just executed some pitches and they've called some good stuff to good hitters and good counts. So just kind of lucky to have the team around me and making plays too, kind of helping me get out of those jams.”

Through two innings, Trevor Williams was dealing for the Nationals. Atlanta hadn't had a base runner and had only seen 21 pitches combined. Matt Olson's struggles at the plate have compounded that problem. For the month of May, his numbers have dipped, and today didn’t offer much change.

The third inning saw Smith-Shawver settle back in. He struck out Abrams again, swinging, making it two strikeouts in two at-bats against him. AJ worked through the inning clean. The Braves finally scratched across a run in the bottom of the third. Eli White reached on a throwing error and quickly stole second to get into scoring position. Nick Allen followed with a hard-hit grounder past Abrams to score White and give Atlanta a 1-0 lead. After Verdugo flew out, Baldwin continued to make his presence felt with a single to center on a high fastball, putting two on. But Ozuna grounded out on a sharp play by Lowe at first to end the threat. Still, the Braves had momentum.

Smith-Shawver carried it right into the fourth. He leaned on his four-seamer and splitter combination and cruised through another perfect frame. Nick Allen also flashed some glove work with a tough play at second. That kind of infield help is big, especially for a young arm like AJ’s.

The offense went quiet again in the bottom of the fourth. Olson popped out early in the count again, falling to 0-for-2. The Braves’ offense continues to ride that roller coaster — just when things start to click, it stalls again. Thankfully, the pitching has kept them afloat more often than not.

Smith-Shawver was locked in. Through five innings, he had allowed just one hit, which came on that deflected comebacker. He induced weak contact, kept his pitch count manageable, and worked at a confident pace. AJ’s line through five: no runs, one hit, two walks, and four strikeouts.

When asked about how he's feeling lately, Smith-Shawver gave some insight into his confidence and process:“Yeah, I'm feeling pretty good with my stuff and just kind of how my body's moving right now. I've just been trying to build up on it and just kind of stay in the same place and just keep the routine the same and just kind of keep trying to put some things together and some pitches together and just execute what I can.”

In the bottom half of the fifth, Ozzie Albies got on base via hit by pitch. Eli White flew out, but Nick Allen continued his productive day with a single to move Albies to third. Verdugo, celebrating his birthday, capitalized with an RBI single to make it 2-0. Baldwin followed with another RBI single to push the lead to 3-0. That chased Williams from the game. Brad Lord came on in relief, and Marcell Ozuna delivered a sacrifice fly to score Verdugo and extend the lead to 4-0. Olson ended the frame with another out, moving to 0-for-3.

The shutout bid ended in the sixth. CJ Abrams finally connected for a hit, a single, then stole second after a replay reversal. He would score on a costly error by Austin Riley, who let a routine grounder roll through his legs. That run was unearned. Smith-Shawver bounced back and struck out Rosario and Wood, finishing his day strong with six total strikeouts. His final line: 6.0 innings, 2 hits, 1 unearned run, 2 walks, 6 strikeouts. Another start that reinforces his rising stock in the rotation.

The Braves didn’t generate much in the bottom of the sixth outside of an Albies single. Pierce Johnson came on for the seventh and walked Josh Bell but settled down to retire the side. Andrew Chafin came on for Washington and issued a leadoff walk to Allen. Baldwin kept rolling, beating out an infield single, his third hit of the game. That’s the kind of hustle you love to see. Chafin was pulled for Zach Brzykcy, who kept Atlanta from adding more.

Dylan Lee took over in the eighth and gave up a no-doubt homer to CJ Abrams, who took an 84 mph slider the opposite way to the Chop House. While the pitch location wasn’t awful, Abrams just squared it up. After Rosario singled, Nick Allen showed his defensive strength once again with a 6-3 unassisted double play on a sharp grounder from Wood. Ruiz doubled next, but Lowe grounded out to end the inning. The Braves held onto a 4-2 lead.

Jorge López took the ball for the Nationals in the eighth, and Riley led off with a double, his eighth of the season. Harris moved him to third on a groundout, and Eli White knocked him in with a clean RBI single. That made it 5-2 Braves heading to the ninth.

Raisel Iglesias came on to close things out. He had some ups and downs in his last outing but earned the win. Today, he was efficient. Even with a leadoff single from Bell, Iglesias needed just 10 pitches to end the game. Fittingly, it ended on a smooth 4-6-3 double play from a José Tena groundout.

The Braves took the win 5-2 and the series three games to one. They now head into Boston with a 22-22 record, and maybe a bit of momentum at their backs.

New Braves Gear Awaits, at MLB Shop.

Big picture, AJ Smith-Shawver continues to show real growth. His command, pitch mix, and maturity on the mound are all coming together fast. That second inning jam where he worked out of a bases loaded spot without damage showed exactly that. He’s making the kind of leaps that matter, and the Braves should feel good about how he’s settling in.

Braves manager Brian Snitker summed it up postgame: “I see a real confident mound presence. You know, he should be. I mean, the way he's throwing, I mean, I see that he's on the attack now. He's the aggressor, which is really, really good.”

Snitker also praised the overall arsenal Smith-Shawver brought to the mound: “I mean, just the overall pitch mix, I thought that might have been better than the no hitter game. I mean, just life on the fastball. I thought, you know, his curveball was playing today, you know, threw some good splits.”

And Drake Baldwin, the kid just hits. He finished the day 3-for-4 with an RBI, and across the series, went 7-for-9. He’s now 9-for-his-last-12, a blistering .750 stretch, as pointed out by Barrett Sallee of 680 The Fan. Baldwin has proven he’s not just a fill-in or a depth piece, he’s becoming a real contributor. If the Braves are serious about winning, they’re going to have to keep his bat in the lineup.