The Atlanta Braves beat the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday, continuing Braves pitcher Reinaldo Lopez’s historic season.
The right-hander, who signed last offseason, gave up just two hits over 6.0 innings, with one walk and eight strikeouts for a respectable 4-2 record. He lowered his ERA to just 1.69 and joined the ranks of the Braves Hall of Famers who have made their mark in franchise history.
According to @JayHayKid of the “Baseball is Dead” podcast:
Reinaldo Lopez has a 1.69 ERA through his first 12 games this season.
It’s the lowest ERA by a Braves pitcher through the first 12 games of a season since Tom Glavine in 2002 (1.59).
Reinaldo Lopez has a 1.69 ERA through his first 12 games this season.
It’s the lowest ERA by a Braves pitcher through the first 12 games of a season since Tom Glavine in 2002 (1.59).
— Nugget Chef (@jayhaykid) June 13, 2024
There were certainly some questions when the Braves signed Lopez last offseason and said they wanted him to be a starter. Though Lopez has only started one game since 2022, his return to the starting rotation, where he served from 2016-2021, has been fairly smooth.
Lopez is in his ninth season as a player with the Washington Nationals, Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Angels and Cleveland Guardians and has a career record of 43-51 with a 4.07 ERA, but should be a strong candidate for an All-Star appearance this season.
His contributions in Atlanta will be even greater considering that both Spencer Strider and Ronald Acuna Jr. suffered season-ending injuries. The only question that remains for Lopez is whether he can maintain that workload through the remainder of the year. He’s already thrown 69.1 innings this year, his most since 2019.
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