An all-too-familiar story for the Braves this season is losing key players to injuries.
First, it was Spencer Strider, then Ronald Acuña Jr., followed by Ozzie Albies. Now, Austin Riley is out with a broken hand and will miss six to eight weeks. This leaves the Braves searching for a third baseman.
Their options are limited at this point in the season. Yuli Gurriel and Gio Urshela are on their radar. The Braves signed Urshela after he was released by the Tigers on Sunday. In 92 games with Detroit, Urshela hit .243/.286/.333 (73 OPS+) with five homers and 37 RBIs. He last had a good hitting season in 2022 but has played plenty of third base recently.
Meanwhile, Gurriel has been playing in Triple-A Gwinnett all year. The 40-year-old has impressive stats: .300/.380/.498 with 18 doubles, 12 homers, 48 RBIs, 38 runs, and 11 steals over 72 games. However, he hasn’t been productive in MLB since 2021 and last played third base in the majors that same year.
Braves’ Current Standings:
The Braves just returned home after winning five out of seven games on their west coast trip. They currently hold the last NL wild-card spot and are one and a half games ahead of the Mets but trail seven games behind the Phillies. With three upcoming home games against Philadelphia starting Tuesday, there’s an opportunity to shake up the NL East race.
Due to these injuries, Atlanta’s lineup is looking thin right now. Losing Riley makes things worse. Fans might wonder if Gurriel or Urshela can step up when it matters most.
Of course, it’s not ideal to rely on players who haven’t been at their best recently. But sometimes that’s how sports go! What do you think? Can they pull through?
