For the last few weeks, one of the biggest question marks going into the playoffs was who would start a potential Game 3 for the Atlanta Braves. While ace Chris Sale had cemented his spot for the first game, and Tyler Mahle emerged as the clear cut favorite for the second game, it was beginning to look like Martín Pérez was going to have the inside track to start a winner-take-all game, if necessary.
Unfortunately for the Braves, Pérez won't be starting in the NL Wild Card Series, nor will he be starting in the NLDS if the Braves are able to adance. On Thursday, Atlanta announced that the veteran lefty was going on the injured list with lower back inflammation.
Martin Perez will be going on the IL with lower back inflammation
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) September 24, 2026
Martín Pérez injury seriously alters Braves playoff rotation
Although the underlying metrics on Pérez aren't very pretty to look at, the 35-year-old veteran's performance for the Braves this season is one big reason the club was able to clinch the division before the final week of the season.
In 30 games this year (26 starts), Pérez threw 142 innings with a 3.04 ERA and 4.31 FIP. Atlanta went 15-11 in games he started.
Going into the playoffs, one of the biggest questions was whether Atlanta would use Pérez in the winner take all Game 3, if Grant Holmes would start, or if the team would piggyback the two. With Pérez off the table with an injury, the Braves now must decide if they trust Holmes as the starter, or if they need to concoct a bullpen game strategy that could stymy a playoff caliber offense.
Even worse for the Braves is the timing of Pérez's injury. Even if the 35-year-old only required the minimum time on the IL, the 15 days, even backdated as far as the rules allow, would not be up by the start of the NLDS, meaning if the Braves were to advance to the NLDS, Pérez would not be an option.
With the playoffs less than a week away, the Braves will need to navigate yet another injury to their starting rotation, with very little time to make adjustments.
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