The Atlanta Braves are rolling out two of their starting pitchers for the Spring Training matchup against the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday.
According to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman, Chris Sale will be on the bump to start the game and AJ Smith-Shawver will follow. The latter arm was originally scheduled to start Thursday’s game against the Philadelphia Phillies. Reliever Hector Neris is now opening that one.
This setup would give Sale an extra day of rest ahead of his Opening Day start March 27. Bowman added, while not confirmed by Braves manager Brian Snitker, that Smith-Shawver would be lined up for a start in the first game of the series with the Los Angeles Dodgers.