Braves Promote Pitcher, Place Another on IL

The Atlanta Braves are making a move in their bullpen as A.J. Minter is headed for another stint on the IL.

Atlanta Braves pitcher A.J. Minter is heading for another stint on the IL. / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Atlanta Braves reliever A.J. Minter is heading back to the Injured List after going down with left hip inflation, the team reports. In a corresponding move, the Braves called up Dylan Lee. One lefty takes the place of another.

The #Braves today recalled LHP Dylan Lee to Atlanta and placed LHP A.J. Minter on the 15-day injured list with left hip inflammation.

— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 12, 2024

This is the same injury that took out Minter earlier this year. His last trip to the 15-day Injured List had him absent from the Braves bullpen for a month. 

As if anything could go worse for the Braves, the injury bug struck once again. Minter has been one of the stronger members of the bullpen this season. 

In 39 appearances, Minter has a 2.62 ERA with a 1.01 WHIP with 35 strikeouts and 34 1/3 innings pitched. In his 14 appearances between stints on the Injured List, he had a 2.08 ERA. He had tossed a scoreless inning before handing the ball to Luke Jackson and watching the Braves blow a six-run lead against the Colorado Rockies. 

Lee has been bouncing back and forth from MLB and Triple-A despite having a strong season. He has a 2.00 ERA across 45 innings pitched. Having the minor league options will leave you victim to the roster shuffle. 

Throughout the season, the Braves bullpen has had a 3.38 ERA. Sunday’s collapse aside, it has remained consistent even as the starting rotation has hit a rut over the last few weeks. 

Fortunately, unlike the rotation, the Braves have their options for the bullpen. So, if someone gets hurt, there’s someone in Triple-A who already pitched well in MLB this season. Reliever Daysbel Hernandez, for example, has a sub-1.00 ERA and keeps getting sent back down. 

We’ll likely see him again at some point. 

The Braves continue their western road trip on Monday night when they start their series with the San Francisco Giants. First pitch is set for 9:45 p.m.