Mariners Cheat Sheet: A Brief Intro For The Braves Two Quality Left-Handed Pitchers

Jerry Dipoto no longer wants to make one trade at a time. You see, he has mastered that rudimentary task and has been looking to do something more challenging. We here at Sodo Mojo are a generous people, and thus, we would like to offer a beginner’s guide for Braves for to get acquainted with the newest pitchers.

Earlier today, the Mariners traded Luiz Gohara and Thomas Burrows to the Braves for Mallex Smith and Shae Simmons. Smith was a Mariner for 45 minutes before being shipped to Tampa Bay. He is one of the fastest players in baseball but has trouble making consistent contact.

Smith was a Mariner for all of 45 minutes before being shipped to Tampa Bay. He is one of the fastest players in baseball but has trouble making consistent contact.

Simmons is a hard throwing reliever who missed the entire 2015 season and most of the 2016 season after recovering from Tommy John surgery.

His fastball is anywhere from 96-99 mph with run and a solid curveball. He will compete for a bullpen spot in Spring Training.

The Braves return was much more exciting. Below is a breakdown of their two newest pitchers.

Luiz Gohara

Gohara was Sodo Mojo’s #6 ranked prospect in the Mariners farm system. You can get our full breakdown here.

Gohara is a high-upside, flame-throwing left-handed pitcher. His 93 MPH fastball is thrown from the 3/4 arm slot, generating good sink.

His off-speed pitches need work. The slider is ahead of his changeup and flashes as major league average.

Gohara’s command has improved recently. After coming into 2015 overweight and out of shape, Gohara worked hard, dropping 30 lbs and improving his mechanics.

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After coming into 2015 overweight and out of shape, Gohara worked hard, dropping 30 lbs and

improving his mechanics.

His upside is as a #2 starter but should be a good bullpen arm even if he never reaches his full potential.

Thomas Burrows

Burrows was the Mariners 4th round pick in 2016 out of the University of Alabama. He is a potential quick-to-the-big-leagues reliever. He was a pure reliever in college, so he will not make a transition into the rotation.

Burrows low 3/4 arm slot makes his fastball, which sits at 93-95 mph, play up. The arm slot generates a lot of sink-and-run to the pitch making him a potential ground ball machine.

The slider is already a very solid MLB offering and is equally tough against righties and lefties. Burrows does not currently have a third pitch, but he doesn’t really need to at this point.

His command must improve if he ever hopes to become a high-leverage option, but the stuff is definitely there. Burrows could be in the Braves bullpen at the end of the 2017 season.

Next: Mariners Dipoto Has A Back-Up Plan

Needless to say; Thanks to the Mariners, the Atlanta Braves have added 2 more solid arms to their impressive array of young pitching.