The comically bad injury luck continues for the Atlanta Braves.
The Braves announced Monday that they are placing pitcher Reynaldo Lopez on the 15-day injured list due to right forearm inflammation. The move is backdated to Aug. 2, and fellow righty Bryce Elder is being recalled from the minors in a corresponding move.
Lopez, 30, was a first-time All-Star for the Braves this season. He has gone 7-4 with a sparkling 2.06 ERA and 102 strikeouts in 19 starts. But Lopez has not pitched since July 28 and has been unable to even throw a bullpen ever since then.
After spending the last several years as a reliever, Lopez has transitioned back into a starting role for the Braves this year and has already thrown his most innings since the 2019 season as a result. While the time off could help out Lopez from a workload standpoint, the 60-51 Braves have already been ravaged by injuries. Ronald Acuña and Spencer Strider are both out for the year, and a different All-Star suffered a big injury a couple weeks ago too.
The good news though is that the Philadelphia Phillies are suddenly fading atop the NL East division, and the Braves are slowly geting some other key pieces (like Max Fried) back from IL. As the current No. 1 Wild Card in the NL, Atlanta should still have enough to survive this latest injury blow.
