Braves closer Raisel Iglesias spoke with reporters for the first time since the Braves put him on the injured list with right-shoulder inflammation to begin the season.
Iglesias, 33, has thrown on flat ground for three days but hasn’t yet thrown off the mound.
“I’ve been throwing, just following the program the team set and it’s been going well,” Iglesias said via team interpreter Franco Garcia. “I’m throwing well, and we’ll keep marching forward. Everything feels good. Everything feels normal. Just continuing to progress.
“Right now, I feel really good. I feel new.”
The right-hander said he wasn’t sure when he’d throw off the mound, deferring to the team’s plan (manager Brian Snitker said he didn’t know, either). But the team eagerly awaits Iglesias’ return, knowing they’ll be adding one of the game’s more experienced closers.
Iglesias was brilliant after the Angels dealt him to the Braves at the 2022 trade deadline. He had a 0.34 ERA across 28 appearances, striking out 30 and walking five. The Braves acquired him knowing they’d have an in-house replacement for Kenley Jansen moving forward. Jansen signed with the Red Sox over the winter.
“It’s been hard and it’s been frustrating just to not be able to contribute and help the team win,” Iglesias said. “Just observing has been challenging. For me, I’ve been such a competitive athlete for so many years. I don’t think I’ve been on the IL since 2016. So for me, it’s been challenging and difficult not being able to help the team. And to pitch, which is something I love to do.”
A.J. Minter has served as the Braves’ closer in Iglesias’ absence. Minter has been tremendous to begin the year, holding opponents scoreless and posting a 5:2 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his first five outings.
The bullpen has performed well despite missing Iglesias and reliable veteran Collin McHugh. The group has been worked early – it’s pitched 40-1/3 innings, most in the National League – but its collective 2.90 ERA is fifth best in MLB. The Braves haven’t lost a game they’ve led this season.
New week
The Braves, who faced the Reds in a three-game series beginning Monday, were happy to move past their weekend series against the Padres, which was mostly dreadful as the team dropped three of four games.
Rookie starters Jared Shuster and Dylan Dodd struggled, and that drew most of the attention. But the Braves’ usually potent offense was lifeless during much of the series. The Braves have lost three straight entering Monday, going 3-for-26 with runners in scoring position in that skid. They scored three runs across the final two games.
“We didn’t get big hits, got behind early and tried playing catch up against a good team, that’s hard to do,” Snitker said. “Today is a new day.”
It’s worth mentioning the Braves are 6-4 with three of their losses in games started by Shuster and Dodd. Nonetheless, it was a rarity to see them drop three straight home games. They last lost three consecutive games at Truist Park in August 2021. They didn’t suffer a three-game skid last season until August 2022. They never dropped more than three straight.
Braves must navigate injuries
The Braves’ IL list seems the length of a CVS receipt. Players sidelined: Iglesias (the closer), McHugh (a reliable reliever), outfielder Michael Harris II (the 2022 rookie of the year), starter Max Fried (the team’s All-Star ace), starter Kyle Wright (a 20-game winner in 2022), catcher Travis d’Arnaud (an All-Star who was off to an excellent start).
At least none of them are expected to be extended absences.
“That’s the good thing, that those guys are all in good spots right now with the exception of Travis (who had a concussion),” Snitker said. “They’re all feeling good. They’re all headed in the right direction. I feel good that we’re going to get all them back, they’re going to be healthy and well, and we can have a nice run with all those guys again.
“It hurts. Everybody goes through it. It’s not easy going through it. You have to fight and grind and do what you can do to get all your pieces back.”
Tuesday starter
The Braves still haven’t announced their starter for Tuesday’s contest against the Reds. It’s been presumed to be Wright, who’d make his season debut, but Snitker didn’t announce that Monday afternoon, saying, “I don’t know. We’ll figure that out after (Monday’s game).” The team is short on other options.
Shuster’s and Dodd’s growing pains have only highlighted how the Braves need Fried and Wright to return. Righty Bryce Elder started Monday, trying to build off his first outing in which he pitched six scoreless innings in St. Louis.
