So Far, Braves Can Be Optimistic About Reynaldo López

Another game, another time through the rotation where the Atlanta Braves can exhale. Reynaldo López battled through four innings, holding the Twins to just one run on four hits and two walks. 

He punched out three batters, two on the fastball and one on the curveball. The velocity on his fastball wasn’t consistently where they would want it to be, but he was hitting 94 and 95 on the radar gun. A good chunk of his pitches still sat in the low 90s, but the uptick is there. 

Another important note is that he’s up to 62 pitches with no issues, and he threw 37 of them for strikes. So far, the Braves can feel optimistic about what they’ll get out of López this season. 

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Each time they get through an outing with one of their starters able to make his next start is a positive. They had two major injuries that required surgery virtually out of the gate in camp. Since then, at least when it comes to pitchers, all has been quiet. 

The real debate from now on will be what the happy medium could be. There has to be a sweet spot where they can utilize him as a starter while keeping his health in check. If he can go and throw five innings on 75 pitches each time, that would be great. He would probably stay healthy all year. 

But there will be times, too, when they’ll need him to go six, perhaps throw closer to 100 pitches. Not having an arm that could do that for much of last season was why they won just 76 games. Whether or not they can consistently get that out of him, who knows? 

López made just one start last season and then was out for the season with a shoulder injury. He had multiple stints on the injured list the year before, while also giving the Braves an All-Star season. 

That’s where the uncertainty lies. He has no precedent, while with this team, he can stay healthy. Yet, the Braves have confidently slid him back into the rotation. Perhaps, they had no choice, but that seemed to be inevitable, even before Schwellenbach and Waldrep got hurt. 

Right now, their choice can be seen as justified. How long it will stay that way remains to be seen. His shoulder was cleaned up in a procedure last year. That could help. For his sake, you hope that’s the case. No one wants to see more players go down with an injury. 

That being said, while the Braves have the right to be optimistic right now, others have the right to be cautious. That ideal situation is to discover the happy medium that keeps him around for the long haul. They can’t afford not to make that discovery.