Reynaldo Lopez's tenure with the Atlanta Braves has been quite the rollercoaster. After the Braves signed the righty and declared that they would shift Lopez back to the rotation, Lopez rewarded their faith in his starting potential with an All-Star campaign, including a 1.99 ERA in 26 appearances, although some late-season injury issues foreshadowed significant problems.
After his successful Braves debut, things took a turn for the worse quickly in 2025 when he made just one appearance before shoulder issues cost him basically the entire season. There was some hope that Lopez had enough time to recover to be a productive part of the Braves' pitching staff. 2026 was a bit up and down before Lopez went on the IL again with a knee injury.
On Monday, Lopez will return from the injured list against the Cubs. However, given the team’s other starter options and how much time is left in the season, Atlanta needs to have the returning veteran on a short leash.
Braves shouldn't try to force Reynaldo Lopez as a solution given their other rotation options
It would be one thing if Lopez had been pitching particularly well before he got hurt. That would warrant a bit of patience coming off an IL stint. However, the Braves are trying to lock up the division and compete for a first-round bye, and Lopez’s 4.13 season ERA is mediocre at best, and Lopez was in the middle of a particularly rough stretch before he got hurt. At some point, it isn't worth trying to make it work this season.
On the flip side, JR Ritchie has been shoving in Triple-A lately, and Owen Murphy has been about as steady as they come at Gwinnett before the Braves called him up on Monday. Given the timing, the feeling is Murphy coming up could be an insurance policy if Lopez needs to get the hook early against Chicago. After that, Murphy could remain an option and/or Ritchie could get called up to start later this week.
Whatever the exact order of operations is, it’s very clear that the one thing the Braves can't do is try to force Lopez as a solution. Most of his $14 million salary for 2026 is already paid, and it is more important to play well down the stretch than worry about playing time based on how much money a guy is making. If Lopez pitches well, then it obviously makes sense to see if he can keep it up. However, at the first sign of trouble, the Braves have to be willing to pivot away from him. Their season may very well depend on it.
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