Given a chance to start again, López builds his All-Star case

ATLANTA -- The Braves knew they were making a shrewd move when they signed right-hander Reynaldo López to a three-year deal this offseason, with the plan to convert him back into a starter. They saw the potential López flashed earlier in his career in that role, before transitioning into an effective late-inning reliever for the White Sox. They knew he could be useful in the rotation, both this year and beyond.

But did they know they were getting a potential All-Star?

As the calendar flips to June, that’s more and more what López is looking like. The latest example came Friday, when López breezed through the first six innings of Atlanta’s 4-2 win over the A’s at Truist Park, slicing his ERA to a minuscule 1.73 through his first 10 starts with the Braves.

López struck out eight while holding Oakland to a lone run, and the Braves used a two-run double by Jarred Kelenic and two sac flies to make it hold and end a difficult month of May on a high note. The key was another impressive outing from López in his first extended run as a starting pitcher since 2021.

“The first start, not going to lie, I was feeling really nervous. It almost reminded me of making my MLB debut all over again,” López said through interpreter Franco García. “Up to this point, I’m really happy and proud of the work we’ve put in and how it’s gone.”

The Braves have been intentional about easing López back into the workload demands of starting, engineering extra rest days and letting his pitch counts gradually build over the season’s first two months. He’s handled heavy workloads before, logging 188 2/3 innings in 2018 and 184 in ‘19, but it’s been a while. From ‘21-23, he threw 189 innings total as a reliever, averaging 63 per year.

He’s nearly there already this year, having thrown 57 1/3 innings across 10 starts. Most of them have been sparkling. His ERA is tops among qualified National League pitchers and ranks second in MLB, only a percentage point behind Kansas City’s Seth Lugo (1.72). He’s allowed only two homers and pitched to a 1.08 WHIP and .207 opponent average.

“Thankfully, I am feeling good,” López said. “I feel strong. My arm is just getting used to the workload.”

With the Braves losing Spencer Strider for the year and weathering other injuries in the rotation and elsewhere, López’s emergence has been a welcome revelation.

“He’s been great,” said manager Brian Snitker. “I like watching him pitch, because he pitches. When he gets in trouble, I see that late-inning reliever come out in him. To get out of a jam, he can reach back and get extra. But he’s not one of those guys who is gripping and ripping every pitch.”

Said López: “For me, the big difference at this point is the experience. Now I’ve learned how to utilize all my different pitches, how to throw breaking stuff in different counts.”

That self-assessment is spot on. López’s breaking pitches are the driving force behind his 2024 success. Entering Friday, he ranked tied for fifth in MLB with +9 pitching run value on those pitches, and his .154 wOBA allowed on such pitches ranked tied for third among pitchers with 50 or more plate appearances ending in breaking balls, per Statcast.

But López always had an effective slider. The biggest difference this year is his curveball, which López swapped out his changeup for and is now throwing about 11 percent of the time. Having that second breaking ball at his disposal has been a difference-maker, especially against hitters who remember him mostly as a fastball-slider power reliever.

“It’s been really important for me,” López said. “It’s given me the ability to throw a quick strike and catch hitters off guard. It’s no secret that I like to throw a lot of fastballs. It's easy to surprise them with a curveball here and there that hitters might not be expecting.”

If López keeps pitching like this, there might not be anything that gets between him and his first All-Star Game. But if anything does, it may be his own rotation mates, with Max Fried (2.97 ERA) and Chris Sale (2.12 ERA) enjoying excellent first halves as well. At this point, the three-headed rotation monster of Fried, Sale and López is keeping Atlanta afloat through big injuries and an extended offensive slump.

As speculation abounds as to whether GM Alex Anthopoulos will add at the Trade Deadline to plug those roster holes, his belief in López looks like one of the wisest decisions of the offseason.