Do the Braves have a closer problem?

Following eight straight wins, the Braves dropped the first two games of their series with the Yankees, both by a single run.

On Saturday, a comeback attempt fell just short. The night before, the Yankees pulled off one of their own, scoring two runs in the ninth off Raisel Iglesias before winning the game in extras to steal the opener.

For Iglesias, it was just his third blown save of the season in 27 chances. Not too shabby, and about what you’d expect from a closer who recently represented the National League in the All-Star Game. But the trends over the last several months haven’t been encouraging.

Iglesias has surrendered four earned runs in his last two appearances. He’s given up at least one run in five of his last nine, and going all the way back to May 26th, he has a 4.85 ERA with a 4.16 FIP over 26 appearances.

That’s not exactly shutdown stuff, and with concerns growing around Robert Suarez‘s availability for the rest of the season — he’s been out since mid-June with elbow inflammation — the Braves suddenly have a problem at the end of games.

Now, with an 8.5-game lead in the division and given the way the Braves have typically operated under Brian Snitker and now Walt Weiss, I don’t expect any changes to who comes out in the ninth. These kinds of managers love sticking with their guys through tough stretches, especially ones with a track record like Iglesias’, and that line of thinking has worked out very well for the club over the years.

However, if these trends continue over the remaining seven weeks and then leak into the playoffs, perhaps we do see a change. The good news is the Braves have options.

Suarez, if he returns, was an All-Star closer for the San Diego Padres before signing with Atlanta. He’s more than capable of shutting the door in the ninth. And if it isn’t him, Didier Fuentes isn’t a bad option either. Since moving to the bullpen permanently, the 21-year-old is sporting a 1.75 ERA with 55 strikeouts over 46.1 innings, and the confidence is oozing out of him every time he takes the rubber.

Still, it feels like we’re a long way from those kinds of conversations happening inside the building. Keep in mind, the Braves stuck with Will Smith as their closer in 2021 despite his struggles, and he paid them off in a big way during that World Series run. Iglesias is a far better pitcher than Smith ever was, and we’ve seen him work through rough stretches before. Just last season, he posted a 6.75 ERA and 5.72 FIP over his first 25 appearances — then went on to post a 1.25 ERA and 1.98 FIP over his final 45 outings, which earned him another one-year, $16 million deal from the Braves in the offseason.

If Atlanta were locked in a tight division race, fighting for its playoff life, perhaps this would be a different conversation. But they have some wiggle room right now, and if they want to make a deep postseason run, they need Raisel Iglesias to find the rhythm he had over the first couple of months. Losing faith in him now really isn’t an option.