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The Atlanta Braves haven’t put either Huascar Ynoa or Ian Anderson to the mound in a very long time, but they are coming closer to having both 2021 standouts back.
After five starts during his rehab assignment, Anderson’s most recent game was a positive one for High-A Rome on Friday, July 12. Ynoa threw two innings in Rookie ball on Tuesday, July 16, in place of the All-Star Game, marking his first-ever rehab start.
Anderson plans to make a late-season comeback.
After recovering from Tommy John surgery and missing all of 2023, 26-year-old Anderson is making progress. Compared to Ynoa, he has made five rehab appearances between Rookie level, Low-A Augusta, and High-A Rome.
Although Huascar Ynoa and Ian Anderson haven’t taken the mound for the Atlanta Braves in a very long time, they are getting closer to having both of the 2021 standouts back.
On Friday, July 12, after making five starts during his rehab assignment, Anderson’s most recent game was successful for High-A Rome. On Tuesday, July 16, in lieu of the All-Star Game, Ynoa made his first-ever rehab start, throwing two innings in Rookie level.
Later in the season, assuming no more setbacks, the Braves 2021 postseason hero might make a comeback. That is, at any rate, how he is developing.
“It feels good,” Anderson said to Fox 5 Atlanta’s Miles Garrett. “Taking the mound every time is a step closer to returning to Atlanta. That’s how I’m viewing it; I’m just letting everything happen and managing my emotions and performance accordingly.”
After hitting a grand slam in May 2021, Ynoa’s career has been filled with disappointments. His hand broke on May 17, 2021, after he punched the bench during a rough start.
He was out of commission until August, and when he returned, he wasn’t the same; he finished the season with an 0-4 record and gave up 26 runs in 46.1 innings. In 2022, Ynoa struggled in two starts out of the gate, giving up 10 runs in 6.2 innings, and he was sent down to pitch in Triple-A Gwinnett until September 7, 2022, surgery.
In addition to missing the entirety of 2023 due to Tommy John recovery, he suffered another setback at the beginning of this season while pitching for Gwinnett. Following three starts, Gwinnett diagnosed him with right elbow inflammation and put him on a 7-day IL; however, he was later moved to a 60-day IL.
After making his first rehab start with the Florida Complex League (Rookie ball) yesterday, he is now officially back on the pitch. He did not walk or strike out a batter in his two innings of one-run ball.
How might their returns impact the Braves?
Well, with rookie Spencer Schwellenbach steadily improving out of the fifth hole, the Braves currently appear to have a five-man rotation figured out. However, Anderson’s return late in the 2024 season might allow Atlanta to give worn-out starters a break before the postseason.
With Reynaldo López taking on a full workload in his first season as a starter, Chris Sale attempting to maintain his current form while recovering from an injury spiral that included Tommy John in 2020, and Charlie Morton potentially reaching his 40th birthday, the team has starters that raise durability concerns.
When Anderson returns, he could either make some starts or save the bullpen arms and starters by providing long relief, which would lighten the pressure on those players and buy them an extra day of rest.
However, Ynoa doesn’t appear to be a major league pitcher this season, but his comeback suggests that he’ll be back in the mix right away in 2025. Because of his background as a starter and reliever, his return will provide the pitching staff more versatility.
If these guys could generate even a fraction of the spark they did in 2021—the year the Braves won the pennant—then fascinating possibilities would arise. Anderson pitched five scoreless innings in the World Series against the Houston Astros in 2021, going 9-5 with a 3.58 ERA. Ynoa had a 4.02 ERA, 10.1 K/9, and a 4-2 record in the first half of the season that same year.
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