WASHINGTON -- Raisel Iglesias will spend the next couple weeks resting his sore shoulder. But an MRI exam has given the Braves reason to believe the veteran reliever could be back in their bullpen in early May.
“I’m not sure how long this is going to be,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “You just never know. But we’re certainly optimistic it’s going to be shorter than a long absence. All things are positive right now.”
The Braves placed Iglesias on the 15-day injured list on Tuesday with right shoulder inflammation. The move was made retroactive to Monday, so, the right-handed reliever would be eligible for activation on May 5.
Robert Suarez will serve as the Braves’ closer while Iglesias is sidelined. Right-hander Tyler Kinley and left-hander Dylan Lee will be the primary setup options.
Iglesias returned to Atlanta for further examination on Tuesday. The MRI showed no structural damage. So, there’s a chance he could begin throwing once the inflammation subsides.
“We feel like we got out in front of this thing a little bit,” Weiss said.
Iglesias felt discomfort after he warmed up during the ninth inning of Monday night’s 9-4 win over the Nationals. He wasn’t used because the Braves increased their lead from three to five during the inning. But he informed the medical staff of the discomfort he felt after he stopped throwing in the bullpen.
The Braves thought about simply resting Iglesias for four or five days with the hope he could resume pitching at some point this weekend. But they didn’t want to go short in the bullpen during this stretch.
“We're not going to play around with this thing,” Weiss said. “We're looking at the long game here. Pitchers can always benefit from a little break, regardless of who they are.”
When Iglesias wasn’t used as the closer in Saturday’s win over the Phillies, Weiss said the veteran pitcher had slept on his shoulder wrong the night before.
Iglesias earned the save with a scoreless ninth inning in Sunday’s 4-2 win against the Phillies. But his four-seam velocity was 92.9 mph, down from his previous season average of 94.1.
Suarez recorded a National League-best 40 saves last year and he totaled 76 saves over the past two seasons for the Padres. He has allowed one run and seven hits over 9 2/3 innings in his first 10 appearances this year.
Dylan Dodd was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett to fill Iglesias’ roster spot. Dodd allowed one hit over three scoreless innings in his only big league appearance this year.