Days before postseason starts, Martín Pérez goes on IL because of course

The Braves were already going to need luck to have a shot at advancing in the National League Division Series, assuming they get that far.

There, they would face either the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers or the scorching-hot Milwaukee Brewers.

Needing sprinklings of providence – or at least the absence of bad news – the Braves instead got what was behind Door No. 3 on Thursday.

Starting pitcher Martín Pérez will not be available at least through the NLDS round, going on the 14-day injured list with lower back inflammation.

Of course.

A team that could stock a hardware aisle with all the wrenches thrown at it this season, the Braves have now lost two starters from their rotation this month, following Bryce Elder going on the 15-day IL on Sept. 9 after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.

It follows season-ending injuries to starting pitchers Spencer Schwellenbach and Spencer Strider. Another, Reynaldo López, doesn’t seem likely to have a shot at returning.

Along with Grant Holmes, Pérez was a candidate to start a potential Game 3 of the best-of-three wild-card series, following Chris Sale and Tyler Mahle. With a 3.04 ERA this season – 2.70 in his most recent five starts – Pérez would have been a solid option.

And, in the event of the Braves advancing, it would have given manager Walt Weiss the option to start whoever didn’t start Game 3 in Game 1 of the NLDS. But Pérez’ injury presumably makes Holmes the only feasible choice for a possible Game 3.

And then, should the Braves make it to the NLDS, their options to counter Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto (or possibly Tarik Skubal) or Brewers flamethrower Jacob Misiorowski look like JR Ritchie or a bullpen game.

Ritchie has a bright future but has been inconsistent in his rookie season, as his 4.79 ERA attests. Sending Ritchie to the mound to start a best-of-five series wouldn’t be Weiss’ first (or second or third) choice.

The Braves could win a bullpen game. Relievers like Didier Fuentes and Dylan Dodd have been pillars of a bullpen whose 3.41 ERA going into Thursday’s home game against Cincinnati ranked fourth in MLB.

But it would place added pressure on the Game 2 starter – likely Sale – to go deep into the game or otherwise leave the game in the hands of the relievers who weren’t entrusted to win the first game.

If you’re wondering, Elder is probably not going to be ready to come off the IL for the NLDS. Asked before Thursday’s game if there was any chance that could happen, Weiss responded, “I don’t have any idea” and nothing about his tone or body language suggested hope in that happening.

It’s surely a crusher for the lefty Pérez, who went to spring training on a minor-league contract and has been one of the surprises of the team’s overachieving season. Weiss said Thursday that “You can imagine how frustrated he is.”

If there’s any sort of solace for Braves fans to find in this latest setback, it’s that the team has had ample practice in overcoming them, including lengthy IL stays for stars Ronald Acuña Jr. and Drake Baldwin, a decimation of the pitching staff and the full-season suspension of designated hitter Jurickson Profar.

Given those impediments and others, this is not a team that should have started Thursday’s game 93-65 with the NL East banner in its possession and yet did.

“We’ve shown that we can overcome this stuff,” Weiss said. “It’s not ideal but a lot of these great stories I’ve talked about have been created because of types of situations.”

In the Braves’ ideal scenario, they would win the wild-card series (as of Thursday, it would be Philadelphia) in two games with Sale and Mahle eating up most of the innings. That would save Holmes to start Game 1 of the NLDS on Oct. 3, backed by a fresh bullpen and set up Sale to start Game 2 on regular rest.

Of course, it’s possible the wild-card series extends to three games and the Braves have to go deep into the bullpen and scramble the options for Game 1 of the NLDS in the process.

Of course, that assumes the Braves even win the wild-card round. And if this season has taught us anything, it’s that nothing can be taken for granted.