It’s been about as poor a start to the 2025 season as you could draw up for the Atlanta Braves. The play on the field that resulted in an 0-4 start was bad enough, but Monday’s news has felt like a never-ending cycle of gut punches.
Earlier in the day, Jurickson Profar was be suspended for testing positive for banned PED substance. And now, just hours later, the club had to put the man who was on the mound for the second game of the season on the 15-day injured list.
Right-handed pitcher Reynaldo Lopez was placed on the 15-day IL (backdated to March 29) with what the club is calling right shoulder inflammation. Well known depth arm Bryce Elder was called up in his place and is scheduled to start Wednesday versus the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Braves place Reynaldo Lopez on 15-day IL, call up Bryce Elder in his place
The #Braves today placed RHP Reynaldo López on the 15-day injured list, backdated to March 29, with right shoulder inflammation, and recalled RHP Bryce Elder to Atlanta.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) March 31, 2025
Lopez never quite looked himself all spring as he battled a velocity dip and uncharacteristic command issues. Despite that, Atlanta chose to hand him the ball in San Diego. Lopez was really shaky early on, giving up a first pitch homer to Fernando Tatis Jr., but his velocity did experience an uptick later in his outing. However, Lopez only generated three swings and misses in his five innings of work Friday, so it’s clear something was off.
Lopez hit the IL back in September of 2024 with the same shoulder inflammation. Shoulders are often times even more scary than elbow injuries, so if this is something that persists for Lopez, his contract could get ugly in a hurry.
Hopefully a couple of weeks of rest will do the job, much as it did back in September of 2024. As for the Braves pitching staff currently, Elder will get the first chance to replace Lopez and presumably hold that role until either Lopez or Spencer Strider is deemed ready to return.
It’s hard to put a ton of confidence in Elder shutting the door down against the Dodgers on Wednesday, but so long as he can at least keep them in ballgames until reinforcements arrive, the Braves should be OK. Last season Elder had a 6.52 ERA and 4.56 FIP in 10 starts for the Braves. Hopefully, the results are a little better for him in 2025.
