As expected, Brandon Beachy will likely hit the disabled list with a strained left oblique, but a replacement has yet to be announced, according to David O'Brien.
Beachy left Friday's game after two innings with the injury, which occurred during his at-bat in the previous inning. He attempted warmup tosses in the third inning but shut it down. It's not surprising considering you pretty much need that muscle to function as a pitcher.
Beachy's next start is not until Wednesday, meaning the Braves have several days to make a decision on who to call up to make the start. O'Brien is reporting that reliever Scott Proctor will be called up Sunday to fill a spot in the bullpen, so he will probably take Beachy's spot on the roster until Wednesday, when a reliever will have to be sent down to make room for a replacement starter.
That replacement starter is likely to be Mike Minor, who has already made one spot start this season and is sporting a 1.82 ERA in 39.2 innings at Triple-A Gwinnett. Minor was the odd man out of the fifth rotation spot in Atlanta as Beachy took the role.
But the Braves also have Rodrigo Lopez in the mix. Lopez has a 1.79 ERA in 45.1 innings at Triple-A, but he is not on the 40-man roster. The Braves have options to get around this, but it seems that Minor would be the easier choice.
Oh, and don't expect Julio Teheran to get called back up. That's very unlikely.
So there is still no timetable for Beachy's return, and there probably won't be for a while. He will sit on the disabled list for at least a couple weeks before any type of decision is made on his return. In the meantime, be glad the Braves have such incredible depth in the rotation.
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