"Both Schwellenbach, 25, and Waldrep, 23, were known to have issues with the elbows before today's announcement, so Braves fans may not be freaking out as much as it would seem from the outside. Still, each young righty was outstanding in a partial big league season in 2025, and was expected to be a major contributor this year to a very good Braves team."
"Now, the return for each pitcher is TBD. These kinds of procedures, as opposed to a reconstruction, do not necessarily take a guy out for an entire year, but they are also pretty difficult to project the precise timeline. Several months would seem to be the minimum, and I'd think the Braves are unlikely to have any expectations for these guys in the first half."
"The Braves currently have Chris Sale, Spencer Strider, Reynaldo Lopez, Grant Holmes, Joey Wentz, Bryce Elder, and a variety of Triple-A arms available for their rotation group. They can weather this without necessarily having to rush out and scoop up anyone who is remaining out there. But the expected performance from Schwellenbach and Waldrep is probably not something they can easily replace."
Spencer Schwellenbach underwent surgery to remove loose bodies and Hurston Waldrep will undergo a similar procedure, with no timetable provided. Both pitchers were known to have elbow issues before the announcements and each produced outstanding partial big-league seasons in 2025. These procedures are less extensive than reconstructions but still carry uncertain recovery timelines; several months is a reasonable minimum and the Braves likely do not expect them in the first half. Current rotation options include Chris Sale, Spencer Strider, Reynaldo Lopez, Grant Holmes, Joey Wentz, Bryce Elder, and various Triple-A arms. The team can cover innings, but replacing their expected performance will be difficult in a competitive NL East.
Read at Bleacher Nation
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