Julio Teheran Eager To Prove Himself As Atlanta's Ace

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Though he knows that he is lined up to make his second straight Opening Day start, Julio Teheran has accepted the challenge issued by his rotation mate Alex Wood, who said he came to camp ready to push Teheran in an attempt to gain this honor.

Coming off two straight 14-win seasons, Teheran does not seem to be the least bit complacent or satisfied with what he has accomplished during the early portion of his career. The 24-year-old right-hander stands as the ace of Atlanta's talented young rotation. But he came to Spring Training with the plan to prepare with the same determination he had when he had to earn a roster spot before the 2013 season.

Teheran will begin accelerating his preparations when he makes his Grapefuit League season debut against the Tigers in Lakeland on Thursday afternoon. As he progresses through his scheduled two-inning stint, he will attempt to begin getting back to where he was last year, when he posted a 2.89 ERA and completed a career-high 221 innings over 33 starts. The successful campaign netted him his first career All-Star selection.

With some doubt surrounding Atlanta's offense, some added pressure will be placed on the starting rotation, which will also include Wood, Mike Minor and Shelby Miller. Minor, 27, is the only member of this quartet who has already celebrated his 25th birthday.

But Teheran, who is under contractual control through 2019, believes this season will simply provide an opportunity for this group to prove how special the Atlanta rotation can be for many years to come.

Braves To Juggle Lineup For Awhile

Faced with the task of making a multitude of roster decisions, Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez will spend the next few weeks juggling his lineup in an attempt to get a feel for what Eric Young Jr.and many of his new players can offer.

Young got his first chance to audition for the center-field role when he batted leadoff in Wednesday afternoon's Grapefruit League season opener against the Mets. Over the next few days, the two other top candidates -- Eury Perezand Todd Cunningham -- will get chances to serve as the starting center fielder.

Along with attempting to get a feel for what his players can provide, Gonzalez has to construct his lineups in a manner that will provide his players sufficient rest and also give some of his most seasoned veterans opportunities to miss a few road trips.

Given that the Braves are traveling to Lakeland on Thursday, it certainly was not surprising to see that A.J. Pierzynski was behind the plate for Wednesday's game. Projected starting catcher Christian Bethancourt will continue to earn his stripes when he makes the short drive to catch Julio Teheran during Thursday's contest against the Tigers.

With Andrelton Simmons (sore oblique), Nick Markakis (returning from neck surgery) and Melvin Upton Jr. (left foot injury) all currently sidelined, Gonzalez will take advantage of the chance to provide more innings to some of his other players like Jace Peterson and Zoilo Almonte. During Wednesday's game, Peterson started at shortstop and Almonte was positioned in right field.

Simmons has continued to make steady progress over the past few days, but Gonzalez did not know when his Gold Glove shortstop might be cleared to play. Markakis has spent the past week running and completing other conditioning exercises, but he still has not been on the field in uniform.

--- Source: MLB.com