Not a bad line for Tim Hudson’s first start in a year: 5 1/3 innings, five strikeouts, two runs and six hits. And the win.
Now comes a test as big as starting: How will Hudson’s arm respond in the next few days?
Twenty-four hours after the fact, he reported only that his hips felt a little stiff; otherwise, he felt the way he normally does after pitching in spring training.
That’s one reason why the Braves’ pitching probables were listed Wednesday as “undetermined” for the Saturday and Sunday games at home against the Reds. The iffy weather in Florida, where the Braves still had two games to play, was a factor.
But Wednesday’s game was played without rain delays, and by Thursday, manager Bobby Cox had settled on Jair Jurrjens and Hudson to follow Derek Lowe this weekend. That repeats the previous starting sequence, skipping Kenshin Kawakami, as was planned.
The Braves are off Monday, which theoretically would be Kawakami’s spot. It might take until Sunday to see whether Cox goes to a six-man rotation or assigns one of the six starters to the bullpen.
MARLINS 8, BRAVES 3: Tommy Hanson, who had thrown only two innings over the last 12 days, struggled to get through five innings on 104 pitches. Then the bullpen allowed a seven-hit, six-run sixth inning.
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Added: September 4, 2009
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