ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – The Atlanta Braves are already set to be without right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach (elbow), catcher Sean Murphy (hip) and shortstop Ha-Seong Kim (hand) on Opening Day, and that list could soon grow. Manager Walt Weiss told reporters Sunday that right-hander Hurston Waldrep experienced right elbow discomfort following a recent live batting practice session and will see a doctor.<\/p>\n
BREAKING: Walt Weiss tells us Hurston Waldrep felt sore after live BP, had \u201cloose bodies\u201d and an MRI but showed the ligament is fine but waiting for more news. <\/p>\n
Don\u2019t know the extent of the injury right now.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Baillie Burmaster (@baillie_burm) February 15, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Weiss said that Waldrep underwent an MRI that revealed \u201cloose bodies,\u201d though his ligament appears to be intact. Waldrep will see Dr. Keith Meister this week, as the team remains uncertain about the full extent of the injury. Meister is a highly regarded surgeon who recently performed UCL elbow procedures on both Spencer Strider and AJ Smith-Shawver.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s some things in there that shouldn\u2019t be there, I guess,\u201d Weiss said. \u201cI think it\u2019s fairly common with pitchers. I don\u2019t want to elaborate on the loose bodies, because I\u2019m not totally sure, but it probably needs to be dealt with. I don\u2019t know what that looks like as far as procedure or anything, but I guess Dr. Meister will let us know.\u201d<\/p>\n Waldrep showed promise during his stint in the majors last season, posting a 2.88 ERA over 56.1 innings with 55 strikeouts. He impressed many \u2014 including Chris Sale \u2014 during the live batting practice session he completed Thursday, the same session in which he injured his elbow.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a young kid with a promising future,\u201d Weiss said. \u201cThe other day, he opened up some eyes popping 99 (mph) right out of the gate.\u201d<\/p>\n With Schwellenbach sidelined \u2014 and now possibly Waldrep \u2014 the need for another starting pitcher has become increasingly urgent. At the moment, the rotation lines up as Sale, Strider, Reynaldo L\u00f3pez and Grant Holmes. The fifth starter will be determined through competition this spring, according to general manager and president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos.<\/p>\n If Waldrep does indeed miss significant time, Bryce Elder is the likely frontrunner to earn the fifth rotation spot if the team does not add anyone else. However, if one of the five projected starters were to get injured \u2014there are injury risks surrounding both Holmes and L\u00f3pez \u2014 who would step up? The depth Anthopoulos touted during the opening days of camp has already begun to thin.<\/p>\n The #Braves<\/a> really needed to sign a starter once they planned on solidifying a rotation that included Reynaldo Lopez and Grant Holmes, who\u2019ve both had injury problems. Now Schwellenbach and possibly Waldrep are out after 1 week of ST. <\/p>\n Giolito and Littell are still available. https:\/\/t.co\/VA0LzYZCP0<\/a><\/p>\n