The Atlanta Braves made a surprise move this week, handing current reliever Reynaldo Lopez a chance to return to the team's rotation. It makes sense after getting swept against the San Diego Padres in the middle of a frustrating June collapse. A National League East lead that once looked completely impossible to give up has quickly shrunk as the Philadelphia Phillies have made it clear they are going to continue to turn up the pressure on Atlanta.
A piece of the team's collapse has been an injury to Spencer Strider, as well as regression from Martin Perez, Bryce Elder, and struggles from JR Ritchie. To put it simply, a rotation that once appeared to have far too many options is very quickly falling apart and leaving the coaching staff searching for possible answers.
Lopez had an elite 2024 season as a starting option before missing the bulk of the 2025 season due to injury. The start of 2026 offered two solid starts before a brawl with Jorge Soler resulted in a suspension and appeared to snowball into rough outings that resulted in a quick demotion due to the team's depth at the position.
Now, Lopez has a chance to reclaim a spot in the rotation with a very clear path open to becoming a second or third option behind Chris Sale. This is Atlanta's hope, with a return to the rotation needing to set up a bounce-back second half of the season.
Braves Handing Reynaldo Lopez Golden Opportunity to Regain a Level of Momentum
The goal for Lopez in his first start is to complete three innings on 60 pitches or fewer. The starter isn't going to be a deep option for his first starts, but more of an opener after spending weeks in the bullpen and dealing with inconsistent chances to step onto the mound. Atlanta is very aware of this and is going to piece together bullpen games as they attempt to put Lopez back into the team's rotation.
It makes sense as the franchise has very little depth after Strider went down, and with the current struggles taken into consideration. Lopez returning to the rotation and the promotion of Hurston Waldrep seem the most likely decisions to help offset the current level of concern.
For Lopez, it is a chance to put his career back on track and take away the question marks that have been haunting the right-hander over the last two months of the season. No question, all eyes will be on Lopez in hopes that the veteran can turn back the clock and present a viable starting option.
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