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Two decades after introducing Tom Glavine, John Smoltz and Steve Avery as the cornerstones of what would become one of the best starting rotations in Major League history, the Braves have once again assembled a group of talented young pitchers who also seemingly have the potential to be part of something special in Atlanta. "I know from my perspective looking at the team, whether it be as a forme college football polls r player or a fan, there are some arms to get excited about," Glavine said. "You can get excited about them, not only because they have a chance to be good in a given year -- they've got a chance to be good for a number of years. That's exciting." While current rookie starting pitchers Brandon Beachy, Mike Minor, Randall Delgado and Julio Teheran have the capability to establish a strong core college football polls that could continue to draw comparisons to the legendary group formed by Glavine, Smoltz and Greg Maddux, this group of young hurlers has encountered a path that has introduced them to pressure situations much sooner than the aforementioned Hall of Fame-caliber pitchers encountered. With Jair Jurrjens and Tommy Hanson sidelined by injuries, the Braves have spent the past month attempting to preser college football polls ve a once-comfortable lead in the National League Wild Card race with three rookies -- Beachy, Minor and Delgado -- in their starting rotation. Teheran, who is regarded by many as the game's top pitching prospect, also started the nightcap of a Sept. 8 doubleheader against the Mets. "They've been thrust into the front line, and they've all responded very well," Braves general manager Frank Wren sa college football polls id. "I think the experience they're gaining now in a pennant race is going to be invaluable. It's going to put us in a real strong position going forward with these young pitchers. They're all going to have critical experience." As the Braves have watched their lead in the NL Wild Card race slip from 8 1/2 games to 1 1/2 games in September, they've certainly missed the experience that Jurrjen college football polls s and Hanson would have provided. But the rookies have not been to blame for the collapse. They have combined to post a 3.65 ERA while starting 13 of the 21 games the team has played this month. "They have shown why they were considered untouchable when teams were looking to make trades," Braves catcher Brian McCann said. The rookies' combined ERA in September starts would look even more impre college football polls ssive had Beachy not surrendered four earned runs in each of his past two starts. But the Braves certainly are not going to complain about the contributions the 25-year-old hurler has made since his surprising rise to their rotation. With Teheran, Delgado and Arodys Vizcaino, who has been in Atlanta's bullpen since early August, the Braves already have their top three pitching prospects at the Maj college football polls or League level. The 21-year-old Delgado is the oldest member of the group. Beachy, an undrafted free agent signed out of a collegiate summer league in 2008, was never considered a top prospect. But he has impressed a multitude of observers while going 7-2 with a 3.58 ERA this year. His 160 strikeouts are the most recorded by a Braves rookie since 1900. "They've been thrust into the front line, college football polls and they've all responded very well. I think the experience they're gaining now in a pennant race is going to be invaluable. It's going to put us in a real strong position going forward with these young pitchers. They're all going to have critical experience."-- GM Frank Wren"These guys have excelled at their levels," Wren said. "They haven't just been good. They've excelled and been at the top o college football polls f their leagues. I think that's a separator in itself. We're looking forward to the day when they're all established at the big league level and what that will mean for our club." The Braves did not know what they were producing when they brought Glavine to the Majors in 1987 and Smoltz one summer later. That young core also included Kent Mercker and Avery, who took his lumps in '90, then ex college football polls celled with the rest of the Braves in '91, when Atlanta ended its days as a last-place club and won the first of 14 consecutive division titles. Glavine and Smoltz learned how to pitch at the Major League level without feeling the pressure that the Braves' rookies have felt this month. Delgado made his sixth career start on Tuesday night, less than 24 hours after the Braves had blown a lead with college football polls two outs in the ninth and seen their NL Wild Card lead drop to 1 1/2 games. But nearly six months after beginning his season with Double-A Mississippi, Delgado showed no signs of stress, as he produced what might prove to be the most important start of the year for the Braves. The right-hander tossed five scoreless innings and notched his first career victory in a game that relieved some of t college football polls he stress that had been built up as the club struggled in September. "It's a different animal when you have that luxury of not having to win right away, because that's not where your team is," Glavine said. "The Braves are in a position where they have to win, so that puts a lot of pressure on them in that regard." While the rookies have made their mark this month, the Braves' rotation has had college football polls a strong presence throughout the season. Jurrjens and Hanson posted two of the NL's top four ERAs before the All-Star break. Since the break, the two 25-year-old right-handers have battled injuries that have made them ineffective when they have not been sidelined. Jurrjens will miss at least a few more weeks because of a sore right knee, and the Braves are keeping their fingers crossed about Han college football polls son, hoping his right shoulder might be strong enough for him to make a start in the NL Division Series. Minor, the seventh overall selection in the 2009 First-Year Player Draft, and Delgado have filled the vacated rotation spots in an effective manner. Minor has allowed one run or fewer in three of his past six starts and made tremendous strides since exiting Spring Training without being ab college football polls le to consistently command his changeup and breaking ball. His progress has made him a prime candidate to fill a spot in a potential playoff rotation. "He has the look now of a guy who feels like he belongs," Wren said of Minor. "He has the look of a guy who knows he can make the next pitch. He's not worried about the previous pitch." From a contractual standpoint, the Braves could enter the college football polls 2012 season with a starting rotation that once again includes Derek Lowe, Tim Hudson, Jurrjens, Hanson and Beachy. This would obviously force them to make some tough decisions regarding Minor, Delgado and Teheran, who dominated International League opponents in 2011. But it's safe to say that a number of Wren's peers would love the opportunity to make the tough pitching decisions that await h college football polls im this offseason. "I want to know that I'm not going to have to rebuild the pitching staff in a couple of years," Wren said. "I want to know that I have the pieces to have longevity, both in the starting rotation and in the bullpen. "From where we stand today, we feel like we have that. A lot of things change, and you can never sit back and say, 'OK, we're good.' You've got to keep pushing fo college football polls rward, but we've got a lot of foundational pieces in place for the future." college football polls
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