Braves' Reynaldo Lopez: Deems self ready to return

Lopez (shoulder) said he threw a bullpen session Tuesday at about 80 percent intensity, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Though he has yet to be turned fully loose for a bullpen session and has yet to resume facing hitters, Lopez said Wednesday that he feels ready to return from the 15-day injured list. It's not clear if Atlanta agrees with Lopez's assessment, however, so the right-hander should be considered far from a lock to be activated for this weekend's three-game series with the Royals. If Lopez does return before the end of the regular season, he would almost certainly be deployed in relief, given that he has yet to ramp back up to a starter-level pitch count.