ATLANTA (AP) -One night, the Atlanta Braves might count on Mike Gonzalez to get the last three outs.
The next night, Rafael Soriano could be the one handling the crucial job.
The Braves have two overpowering pitchers at the back end of their bullpen, and manager Bobby Cox doesn’t need to worry about which one should be the closer.
He just uses them both.
Gonzalez has eight saves and Soriano five, making the Braves the only NL team that has two relievers with at least five saves. (There are three in the AL.)
“I don’t mind it at all,” said Gonzalez, who started the season as the full-time closer. “When you’ve got an arm like Soriano’s, you’ve got to take advantage of it. If you can mix and match, you should mix and match. I’d be doing it, too.”
when the official save is on the line.
“I’m just playing the innings, that’s all,” Cox said before Wednesday night’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, praising Gonzalez and Soriano for their unselfishness. “It takes team performers in order to do that.”
While Gonzalez is normally the closer, Cox has flipped the roles three times this season – and it’s worked every time, including Tuesday’s 4-3 win over the Pirates. Gonzalez pitched a scoreless eighth and Soriano finished up for the save.
“It just depends on what (Cox) wants to do,” Soriano said. “It’s not a big deal for me.”
Gonzalez has a similar mind-set. Even when he pitches the eighth, he approaches it like he’s going for the save.
“When I go in for the eighth inning, we’re going to be ahead or tied,” he said. “I know I’m more or less going to be facing the 2-3-4 hitters or the power lefties. There’s still no room for error.”
Cox can hardly go wrong the way both guys have pitched in recent weeks. Over their last 10 appearances before Wednesday, Gonzalez had given up one run in 10 1-3 innings, with 12 strikeouts, while Soriano was even more dominant with 15 strikeouts and just one run allowed over 11 2-3 innings.
Overall, Gonzalez was 2-0 with a 2.67 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 27 innings. Soriano was 1-0 with a 0.98 ERA and 37 strikeouts in 27 2-3 innings.
“I don’t care what I do,” Soriano said. “I’m just playing to win.”
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