There was always a possibility that the Atlanta Braves would get rough news when it came to Robert Suarez's ailing arm. Manager Walt Weiss left open the possibility that Suarez could miss more than a couple of days, and any time that a power-armed reliever has elbow soreness, nothing is guaranteed whatsoever. However, the Braves and their fans were hopeful that the gem of their offseason would avoid an IL stint.
Unfortunately, that was not meant to be. A few hours before the Braves were set to take on the Giants on Friday, the team announced that Suarez was headed for the injured list (backdated to June 23). However, the corresponding move for Suarez was to call Hurston Waldrep back up to the majors.
The #Braves today placed RHP Robert Suarez on the 15-day injured list, backdated to June 23, with right elbow inflammation, and recalled RHP Hurston Waldrep to Atlanta. The club also outrighted RHP Carlos Carrasco to Triple-A Gwinnett, and he elected free agency.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) June 26, 2026
Braves lose Robert Suarez to the IL, but do get a rotation boost from Hurston Waldrep
It is WAY too early to start making guesses as to the severity of Suarez's arm injury, although needing to go on the injured list certainly isn't great news. However, we probably would have already heard if there were real structural concerns about Suarez's elbow and that the Braves tried to just give him a couple days off seems like a positive.
What is almost more curious is that the Braves chose this moment to bring Waldrep back up before he was fully stretched out in the minors following his elbow procedure. With Reynaldo Lopez set to start Friday's matchup and that he has a pretty firm 60-pitch limit on his outing, perhaps the Braves' calculation are that they can help get Lopez AND Waldrep stretched out in the big leagues while hopefully preserving the bullpen a bit.
As for Carrasco, the odds have to be near 100% that we will hear that the Braves signed him back on a minor-league deal in the next 48 hours or so. Like Jesse Chavez before him, Atlanta cannot quit Carrasco, and he cannot quit them. Hopefully, the Braves have to employ him in important spots less and less.
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