Reynaldo

López

Brought in with a 7-0 lead, López lost the shutout but didn’t create much drama in the Braves’ victory. Following a second straight shaky outing, it really doesn’t look like he’ll rejoin Atlanta’s rotation any time soon. He’s just no match for Martín Pérez at the moment.

This isn’t the kind of usage that suggests López will be back in the rotation any time soon. López, though, was back up to 94.2 mph with his eight fastballs today. He averaged just 92.5 mph last time out. He was between 93.2 mph and 94.6 mph in his four starts before being sent to the pen to work on mechanical issues.

We knew that López’s spots in the rotation were changed to TBD, but now we know he will officially be in the bullpen for the time being. It’s unclear what mechanical issues López needs to work on, but this will open up a spot in the short-term for JR Ritchie, who will start on Wednesday. Martin Perez will also start on Tuesday; although, his spot could be taken by Spencer Strider within a week.

The 32-year-old hurler was pulled during the second inning during Tuesday’s loss to the Nationals and clearly isn’t right at the moment. The Braves could opt to keep rookie JR Ritchie in their rotation while allowing López to work through his issues in the bullpen. If fantasy managers were planning on starting him or streaming him for his two starts next week, it doesn’t sound like he’s going to be making them.

López walked three and gave up three soft singles in a three-run first. The second then opened with a homer and a single, leading to his removal. López really didn’t deserve any luck while throwing just 30 of his 58 pitches for strikes, but to give up five hits and just two hard-hit balls was mostly a fluke. It’s his first loss of the year, and it leaves him with a 3.74 ERA through five starts. He’ll face the Phillies on Sunday.

It was López’s first start back since a five-game suspension for his part in the brawl with the Angels. It didn’t start out very well, as he gave up a run in the first and three more in the second before he settled down. He struggled with his command as seen in three walks and 53-of-96 pitches landing for strikes, but he was able to fan six despite generating only five swings and misses. López has a friendly matchup on paper against the Nationals on Monday.

The five-game ban, which was reduced from seven originally, goes into effect immediately. The 32-year-old righty won’t be eligible to start again until next week’s series against the Marlins after being involved in a wild on-field brawl with former teammate Jorge Soler where the two traded punches before being separated during the fifth inning of Tuesday’s game in Los Angeles.

Both are appealing, which means that Soler remains in the Angels lineup until after the hearing takes place. The two traded punches in front of the mound during the fifth inning of Tuesday’s game in Los Angeles after López threw up-and-in on Soler, who was hit by a pitch in his previous at-bat following a first-inning homer. The two were previously teammates in Atlanta back in 2024.

Soler and López traded punches during a chaotic donnybrook that erupted during the fifth inning at Angel Stadium after a high-and-inside pitch. Soler clobbered a two-run homer off López back in the opening frame before being drilled hit by a pitch his next time up. Amazingly, it was Braves manager Walt Weiss who delivered a textbook tackle to bring Soler to the ground and help break up the brawl while Mike Trout managed to corral López, who somehow held onto the baseball throughout the entire incident. There will undoubtedly be suspensions handed out by the league after one of the wildest on-field melees in recent years.

López struck out three batters on the night while allowing one base on balls. The only blemish on his evening came on a solo shot off the bat of Jordan Lawlar in the third inning. The Braves provided him with 11 runs of support in the game, so all he had to do was keep the train on the tracks to earn a victory in this one. The 32-year-old hurler got six whiffs on 79 pitches on the night, posting a CSW of 23 percent. He’ll bring a pristine 1.64 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and a 6/3 K/BB ratio (11 innings) into Tuesday’s matchup against the Angels in Los Angeles.