Soroka tears right Achilles tendon, out for season

Atlanta Braves ace and PBF Redbirds and Junior National Team alum Mike Soroka (Calgary, Alta.) tore his right Achilles tendon in the third inning of his club’s 7-2 loss to the New York Mets last night at Truist Park and will miss the rest of the 2020 season. Photo: Amanda Fewer

August 4, 2020

By Kevin Glew

Canadian Baseball Network

Atlanta Braves ace and Calgary native Mike Soroka tore his right Achilles tendon in the third inning of his club’s 7-2 loss to the New York Mets last night at Truist Park and will miss the rest of the 2020 season.

The Braves made the official announcement on Twitter at 10:45 p.m. E.T. last night.

The injury occurred in the top of the third inning when with the Mets leading 3-0 and nobody out, J.D. Davis hit a ground ball to Braves’ first baseman Freddie Freeman. Soroka started to break to cover first base but the Canadian righty crumbled to the ground. He got up briefly and took a few steps towards the Braves’ dugout and then went back down and remained down until the trainer came out.

The Braves confirmed the Achilles’ tear after Soroka was taken to a nearby hospital for an MRI.

The injury happened in Soroka’s third start for the Braves this season. Though he had not recorded a win, Soroka threw six scoreless innings on Opening Day and had carried a 1.59 ERA in 11 1/3 innings into this contest.

“When you lose one of the top pitching arms in this entire game for the whole season, it’s pretty tough,” Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman told reporters after the game. “He was just about to take off. He was unbelievable as a rookie last year and he was off to an incredible start again.”

Medical experts have said the general recovery time for an Achilles tear is nine-to-12 months.

In his first full major league season in 2019, Soroka, who turns 23 today, posted a 13-4 record and a 2.68 ERA, while striking out 142 batters in 174 2/3 innings in 29 starts for the Braves. His ERA ranked third in the National League, while his road ERA (1.35) was the best in the circuit and the fifth lowest in major leagues since 1913 (minimum 15 games started).

Among National League rookie hurlers in 2019, Soroka had the best ERA, was third in wins and fourth in games started, innings pitched and strikeouts. For his efforts, he was named to the National League All-Star team, a starting pitcher on Baseball America’s MLB All-Rookie team, finished second in the National League Rookie of the Year voting, sixth in the Cy Young Award voting and was the winner of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame’s Tip O’Neill Award.

Selected in the first round of the 2015 MLB draft, the PBF Redbirds and Junior National Team alum made his big league debut on May 1, 2018. In five starts for the Braves in 2018, he registered a 2-1 record and a 3.51 ERA.