Reynaldo López goes on 15-day IL; Bryce Elder gets recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett

This has turned into a DAY

Just moments after we all got the news that Atlanta Braves outfielder Jurickson Profar had been suspended 80 games for taking PEDs, the Braves had another awful bit of news to announce. All throughout spring training, there was concern regarding Reynaldo López as he certainly didn’t look right at any point during spring training. López said he was fine and the Braves kept throwing him out there all throughout spring training and through one shaky start in the regular season against the Padres.

Now we know that he has not been fine, as the Braves have placed Reynaldo López on the 15-day IL and have called up Bryce Elder to take his place on the roster while he’s out. The transaction appeared on the Braves website.

Needless to say, this is an absolutely exasperating 1-2 punch of news to receive. López was the second-best pitcher for the Braves last season as he finished 2024 with an ERA of 1.99 (ERA- 48), a FIP of 2.92 (FIP -74) for a career-high fWAR of 3.5. Still, he just has not looked right at all for a solid month now and we now know that whatever’s been ailing him was bad enough to send him to the IL.

As such, Bryce Elder has been recalled and will be taking Reynaldo’s place for the time being. I’m not going to say that things can get much worse because for the past 12 or so months now, the Braves have been taking that as a challenge. For now, this is just another hurdle for the team to clear as they have completely stumbled out of the gate to start this season — on multiple levels, at that.

UPDATE [7:06 p.m. ET]: The Braves have made their announcement on social media and the reason behind Reynaldo López’s trip to the IL is shoulder inflammation, which is extremely concerning.