ATLANTA -- Approximately 48 hours before Monday’s 6 p.m. ET Trade Deadline, the Braves were given yet another reason to acquire at least one starting pitcher.
Reynaldo López was scratched from Saturday night’s scheduled start approximately 50 minutes before the first pitch against the Nationals. He was replaced by Martín Pérez, who had been scheduled to start Sunday’s game.
The Braves said López was scratched because of left knee inflammation that developed while he was in the clubhouse doing his warmup routine. The announcement was made around 6:39 p.m. ET. Pérez was on the field doing his normal pre-start throwing routine a few minutes later.
JR Ritchie was scratched from his scheduled start for Triple-A Gwinnett on Saturday. He will likely start for Atlanta in Sunday’s series finale against Washington.