By now, most of you have probably seen video of the nasty injury that Braves hurler Tim Hudson suffered Wednesday against the Mets (special mention to the classy reaction of Eric Young in the play’s aftermath). Hudson suffered a fractured ankle on the play and will miss the rest of the season, leaving a Prince Fielder-sized hole in Atlanta’s rotation.
Hudson had posted a solid but unspectacular 3.97 ERA and 1.19 WHIP at the time of his injury, but he was owned in close to 75 percent of ESPN fantasy leagues at the time of his injury, so fantasy players will need to replace him as well. Two solid possible replacements are the same pitchers the Braves hope could replace Hudson in their rotation: Alex Wood and Brandon Beachy.
Wood is the only Brave outside of their Opening Day rotation to start on the hill this season, but he has pitched mainly out of the bullpen since making his MLB debut on May 30. His work out of the bullpen has been solid, as he boasts a 2.37 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and a sparkling 4.20 K/BB ratio in relief. The lefty has been a starter throughout his career and was lights out in that role as a minor leaguer before his call-up this season. After posting a 2.22 ERA at Single-A last year, he dominated at Double-A for two months this season before earning his big-league promotion, compiling a dominant 1.26 ERA and 0.98 WHIP. At both levels, his K/9 rate remained around 9.0, meaning he has missed bats at every level.
The Braves are very high on Wood and he will get several to prove he can start at the major-league level, as not only Hudson but also lefty Paul Maholm (wrist) languish on the DL. Once Maholm returns in mid-August, the 22-year old Wood will face competition from Beachy to remain in the rotation.
We have not seen Beachy in a big-league uniform since he had Tommy John surgery in June of last season. At the time of his surgery, the right-hander led the NL in ERA at 2.00 and 0.96 WHIP. He is expected to return to Atlanta’s rotation on July 29, replacing Hudson in the rotation.
The 26-year old completed a rehab assignment on Wednesday; he gave up two runs in six innings of work in his last of seven Triple-A starts. Despite Beachy’s solid MLB pedigree, it is never certain how a pitcher will recover from elbow surgery and his work at Triple-A leaves room for concern.
The righty walked 18 hitters in just 30 innings, a far higher frequency than his 3.11 career BB/9 ratio. Still, despite some trouble with his command, Beachy compiled a solid 3.00 ERA on his rehab assignment and the Braves are optimistic about his performance upon his return to the Show.
Both Wood and Beachy will be in the Atlanta rotation until Maholm’s return, so I recommend that Hudson owners pick up at least one — if not both of them — as Hudson’s replacement on their fantasy staff. It is not clear which of the two will remain in the Braves’ rotation for the duration of the season, but they both appear to be solid starters who could fill a need for fantasy players on short notice.
Dylan Sinn is a freelance contributor for CraveOnline Sports. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSinn or subscribe at Facebook.com/CraveOnlineSports.
Photo Credit: Getty
