The Braves have a plethora of arms working their way back from significant injuries that could potentially have massive impacts in 2024. One of the most notable is the hard-throwing Huascar Ynoa, who underwent Tommy John surgery in September of 2022. The 25-year-old is back at Braves Spring Training, hoping to make the Opening Day roster, whether that be as a starter or a reliever. However, his return to a major-league mound may be put on pause for a while.
According to Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Ynoa felt some soreness while throwing bullpen sessions, but Toscano notes that he could be back on the mound very soon.
At this point, Huascar Ynoa making the Opening Day roster feels far-fetched. The Braves don’t need to be rushing any of these young arms. They have plenty of worthwhile candidates to choose from out of Spring Training, but Ynoa remains a guy to keep an eye on as he ramps his workload back up. I always thought he was a better fit coming out of the bullpen than as a starter because he’s really a two-pitch pitcher right now. However, those two pitches — high-90s fastball and wipeout slider — are oftentimes enough to succeed in a relief role.
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