The Braves’ bullpen conversation has shifted fast, and Raisel Iglesias is right in the middle of it.
Atlanta had won eight straight before running into the Yankees, but the first two games of the series both ended in one-run losses. Friday night got away in extras after New York put up two runs in the ninth against Iglesias. On Saturday, the Braves made a push, only to come up just short again.
That’s the kind of week that gets people asking questions about the ninth inning, even if the overall numbers still look mostly fine on paper. Iglesias has blown just three saves in 27 chances this season, which is hardly a disaster for a closer who represented the National League in the All-Star Game. But the recent stretch has been rough enough to raise eyebrows.
Over his last two outings, Iglesias has allowed four earned runs. He’s given up at least one run in five of his last nine appearances, and since May 26, he has posted a 4.85 ERA with a 4.16 FIP across 26 games. That’s not the kind of run you want from the pitcher charged with finishing games.
There’s also a larger issue hanging over the back end of the bullpen. Robert Suarez has been out since mid-June with elbow inflammation, and there are growing concerns about whether he’ll be available for the rest of the season. If that becomes the reality, Atlanta’s late-inning picture gets thinner in a hurry.
Still, a change doesn’t feel imminent. The Braves have an 8.5-game lead in the division, and Brian Snitker and Walt Weiss have both shown the kind of patience managers usually reserve for established relievers. Iglesias has earned that runway, and Atlanta has leaned into that approach for years.
If the struggles keep going over the next seven weeks and spill into October, then the conversation could change. For now, the Braves do have alternatives.
Suarez, if he returns, was an All-Star closer for the San Diego Padres before signing with Atlanta, and he clearly has the stuff to handle the ninth. Didier Fuentes is another name to keep in mind.
Since moving to the bullpen permanently, the 21-year-old has a 1.75 ERA with 55 strikeouts over 46.1 innings, and the confidence is oozing out of him every time he takes the rubber.
Even so, this still feels like a problem for another day inside the clubhouse. Atlanta stayed with Will Smith as its closer in 2021 despite some rough patches, and that decision paid off during the World Series run. Iglesias is a much better pitcher than Smith ever was, and he’s already shown he can work through ugly stretches.
That happened last season, too. Through his first 25 appearances, Iglesias had a 6.75 ERA and 5.72 FIP.
Over his final 45 outings, he turned it around completely, finishing with a 1.25 ERA and 1.98 FIP. That rebound helped him land another one-year, $16 million deal from the Braves in the offseason.
So while the recent outings have made the ninth inning look a little shakier than usual, Atlanta still has room to breathe. If the Braves want to make a real run in the postseason, they need Iglesias to rediscover the form he had early this year. For now, moving away from him isn’t the answer.
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Sales latest run-in with Merzel gave Atlanta one more flashpoint to absorb in a series that had already featured an umpiring dispute and a manager getting ejected for the first time in his Braves tenure. For Sale, it was the fourth ejection of his career, and it only deepened the sense that this weekend had already moved well beyond the ordinary rhythms of a midseason series. [Read more 🡒]