The Atlanta Braves just proved spring training isn't entirely meaningless by including Didier Fuentes on their Opening Day roster. Fuentes faced long odds to make the team, even with Atlanta's injuries, given how mightily he struggled in his big league cameo last season, but a ridiculous spring training won him a roster spot as a reliever.
Didier Fuentes has made the Atlanta Braves’ Opening Day roster and at 20 years old will be part of their bullpen — and he earned it. Fuentes’ numbers this spring: nine innings, no hits, no runs, no walks, 17 strikeouts. He was too good for the Braves to deny and is a huge talent.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) March 21, 2026
Fuentes making the team was surprising, and the right-hander making it as a reliever is even more shocking. Each of the 20-year-old's four big league appearances came in a starting role last season, and all but four of his 52 minor league appearances have come as a starter as well. With Fuentes in a bullpen role, here's what Atlanta's pitching staff figures to look like on Opening Day.
Projected Braves Opening Day pitching staff
Braves rotation
Braves Rotation Order | Pitcher |
|---|---|
SP1 | Chris Sale |
SP2 | Spencer Strider |
SP3 | Reynaldo Lopez |
SP4 | Grant Holmes |
SP5 | Bryce Elder |
Even with the injuries, this rotation could be good. Chris Sale is still elite when healthy, and the same can honestly be said about Spencer Strider and Reynaldo Lopez. Even Grant Holmes has had a very strong spring.
With the news that Martin Perez has not made the team, it's a near guarantee that Bryce Elder has cracked the Braves' Opening Day rotation. While Elder has had his share of ups and mostly downs in recent years, he's been one of the few Braves starters they could actually rely on to take the ball every fifth day. It does make some sense to give him a starting job, at least while Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep are out, and hope that he's able to eat innings.
Braves bullpen
Braves Reliever Role | Name | Hand |
|---|---|---|
Closer | Raisel Iglesias | Right |
Set-up | Robert Suarez | Right |
Set-up | Dylan Lee | Left |
Middle Reliever | Tyler Kinley | Right |
Middle Reliever | Aaron Bummer | Left |
Middle Reliever | Joel Payamps | Right |
Long Reliever | Didier Fuentes | Right |
Long Reliever | Jose Suarez | Left |
This bullpen has the potential to be really good as well. The late-game duo of Raisel Iglesias and Robert Suarez is awesome, left-handers Dylan Lee and Aaron Bummer have both been mostly reliable, Tyler Kinley was a revelation last season with Atlanta, and Joel Payamps has had a strong spring. Fuentes makes this bullpen even more interesting.
How will manager Walt Weiss deploy him? Will he use him as a traditional long reliever to eat innings? Will he piggyback behind one of their starters? Will he be used in more of a high-leverage situation? He has the stuff to thrive in all three of those roles.
What makes Fuentes being used as a reliever particularly interesting is they've had success with this kind of move before.
Braves' Didier Fuentes decision is reminiscent of Spencer Strider
Spencer Strider had just 22 appearances (21 starts) in the minor leagues before getting called up to the majors for the first time as a reliever in 2021. Both of his MLB appearances in '21 came out of the 'pen, and the same could be said about his first 11 appearances of the 2022 season before the Braves moved him to the rotation. Shortly thereafter, Strider dominated as a starter and the rest has been history.
Fuentes is in a very similar spot. He's had more minor league experience than Strider, but like Strider, has been almost exclusively a starter. Now, the Braves want him to pitch out of the bullpen. I'm not saying it's going to work out as well as Strider, but the blueprint is there.
Plus, if there's a starting pitching injury, who's to say Fuentes won't just move right back to starting?
Are the Braves making the right decision with Didier Fuentes?
On one hand, I see what the Braves are doing. They're lessening the pressure on the 20-year-old by using him out of the bullpen after his first big league experience as a starter went very poorly. Using young, talented starters as relievers is nothing new. Strider thrived with the transition, and the same can be said about guys like Corbin Burnes and Freddy Peralta.
On the other hand, it's definitely eye-opening that the Braves are using Elder in the rotation and Fuentes in the bullpen when it feels abundantly clear that Fuentes is the better pitcher right now. Sure, Elder has more experience and is durable, but Fuentes has such immense upside. If the Braves thought he was ready to pitch in the majors, why not give him a look as a starter where he can be so much more valuable?
If it were me, I'd have Fuentes in the rotation with a short leash, but it's not as if him in the bullpen is a bad thing. The most important thing was ensuring that one of the best pitchers we've seen this spring made the Braves' Opening Day roster, and that has officially happened.