Huascar Ynoa

A year ago, it looked like the Braves had struck gold with Huascar Ynoa. He worked his way into the rotation early in the season, and after seven starts, he was well on his way to an All-Star appearance. The hard-throwing righty had a 4-1 record with a 2.29 ERA entering a May 16th start against the Brewers — a moment that could one day be looked at as a turning point in his career, and not in a good way.

The Atlanta Braves designated left-hander Sean Newcomb for assignment Tuesday and optioned right-hander Huascar Ynoa to Triple-A Gwinnett, one day

The Braves designated left-hander Sean Newcomb for assignment, per a club announcement. They also optioned righty Huascar Ynoa to Triple-A Gwinnett and recalled right-hander Touki Toussaint and lefty Dylan Lee in place of Newcomb and Ynoa. Additionally, the Braves announced that Ronald Acuna Jr. is headed out on a minor league rehab assignment.

Atlanta optioned Ynoa to Triple-A Gwinnett on Tuesday. The demotion is an unwelcome development for fantasy managers hoping to get a two-start week out of Ynoa, who took the hill for Atlanta's series opener in Los Angeles on Monday. Unfortunately, the right-hander labored through 3.2 innings, giving up five runs on four hits and four walks en route to taking his second loss in as many starts this season. Since opening the 2021 campaign with a 2.23 ERA and 0.89 WHIP through his first seven starts and then being shut down for an extended period with a broken hand, Ynoa hasn't re-emerged as a reliable rotation option for Atlanta. The reigning World Series champions had recently added Bryce Elder to the mix as a sixth starter, so Atlanta will likely just condense to a five-man rotation now that Ynoa is headed to the minors.

Ynoa (0-2) completed 3.2 innings against the Dodgers on Monday, allowing five runs on four hits and four walks while striking out four. He was charged with the loss. The right-hander struggled with his control in the contest, issuing four walks and throwing only 40 of 75 pitches for strikes. When he did get the ball over the plate, the Dodgers largely capitalized, knocking a pair of extra-base hits against him, including a Freddie Freeman solo homer in the first inning. Ynoa showed some promise with a 4.05 ERA and 100:25 K:BB last season, but he hasn't pitched well in 2022, allowing 10 earned runs and posting an 8:6 K:BB across 6.2 frames. He'll try to turn things around in his next start, which is tentatively slated to come at home against Miami on Sunday.

Ynoa is now scheduled to start Monday's game against the Dodgers, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports. Ynoa was initially slated to start Sunday's series finale, but he'll instead get an extra day of rest after Bryce Elder was pushed up in the rotation to start against San Diego. Ynoa will attempt to bounce back after he allowed five runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out four in three innings to take the loss Monday against the Nationals.

Ynoa (0-1) took the loss in Monday's 11-2 rout at the hands of the Nationals, coughing up five runs on seven hits and two walks over three innings. He struck out four. The young right-hander was able to escape trouble in the first two innings, but things fell apart for Ynoa in the third. He threw 41 of 72 pitches for strikes before getting the hook, but the Atlanta bullpen didn't have any more success than he did. Ynoa will look to rebound in his next start, scheduled for Sunday in San Diego.