ATLANTA – In sports, there's a mantra that everyone falls back on when the inevitable injuries strike.
Next man up.
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Only one problem for the Atlanta Braves.
“We're having a hard time finding the next man up,” manager Brian Snitker moaned.
An unrelenting series of breaks, tears and strains have left the six-time reigning NL champions scrambling to cobble together a lineup, putting their hopes of making it back to the postseason in serious jeopardy.
“We’re just going through a really weird time right now,” All-Star pitcher Reynaldo López said through a translator. “It just feels like as soon as someone comes off the IL, someone goes on it. Then someone else comes off and someone else goes on. It’s just really strange, but there’s nothing we can do.”
Slugging third baseman Austin Riley was the latest to go down, his year in jeopardy after getting plunked with a 97 mph fastball. He'll need six to eight weeks to recover from a fractured right hand, which knocks him out for at least the rest of the regular season.
He's hardly the first to suffer such a fate:
— NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. sustained a season-ending knee injury in late May, one year after becoming the first 40-70 player (40 homers, 70 stolen bases) in big league history.
— Ace pitcher Spencer Strider, coming off a franchise record for strikeouts in 2023, made it through only two starts this season before a torn elbow ligament ended his campaign.
— Second baseman Ozzie Albies has been sidelined since July 21 after breaking his left wrist while catching a throw on a stolen base. If his recovery goes well, he might be able to return for the final days of the regular season.
— Center fielder Michael Harris II missed two months with a left hamstring injury.
— Key reliever A.J. Minter is done for the season after undergoing surgery for a lingering hip ailment.
— Catcher Sean Murphy, an All Star in 2023, was sidelined for nearly two months after a swing on opening day left him with a strained left oblique muscle.
— Max Fried, another key member of the rotation, spent more than three weeks on the injured list with an inflamed nerve in his left forearm.
— Outfielder Jorge Soler, acquired ahead of the trade deadline to help counter all the injuries, hasn't started in the past week as he deals with a sore hamstring.
Now, add Riley to the list.
“The guys that we're losing, you can’t just go out and replace them," Snitker said. "You've gotta hope you can keep fighting and keep your head above water until you get them back. Unfortunately, a lot of these guys we're not getting back."
For the opener of a crucial three-game series against the first-place Philadelphia Phillies, the Braves sent out a lineup that included three players who've been cut by other teams this season.
Whit Merrifield, released by the Phillies in July, started at second base. Ramón Laureano, let go by the Cleveland Guardians in May, held down right field. Gio Urshela got the nod at third base, a mere two days after he was cast aside by the Detroit Tigers.
All three contributed to a 3-1 victory, undoubtedly using their rejections as motivation. Merrifield tripled, doubled and scored Atlanta's first run. Urshela walked with the bases-loaded in the eighth inning to drive in an insurance run. Laureano made two sliding catches in the ninth to seal the victory.
“You just play the best you can every night and a lot of times it’s not your night,” Merrifield aid. “But to contribute and play well against a team that told you that you weren’t good enough to play for them, it feels good. I'd be lying if I said it didn't.”
In a twist on the injury storyline, López threw five strong innings with 10 strikeouts Tuesday night in his first appearance in more than three weeks. He had been on the injured list with a strained right forearm.
The Braves will continue to need contributions from stalwarts such as López and unlikely sources such as Merrifield if they're to have any chance of making the playoffs, much less pulling off the improbable goal of chasing down the Phillies for a seventh straight division title.
“That would be unbelievable,” reliever Pierce Johnson said. “If we can pull that off, it’s going to be a true testament of the character in this room. Even if we don’t, everybody’s battled all year and I’m proud of each and every one of these guys for showing up every single day. But look, we’re going for it. There's no letting up.”
Thankfully for the Braves, designated hitter Marcell Ozuna has been the one constant in a season of such uncertainty.
He awoke Wednesday leading the league in both average (.309) and RBIs (94), while ranking second with 37 homers. He was two behind Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers, giving Ozuna a very real shot at becoming the first NL player since Joe Medwick in 1937 to accomplish the hallowed Triple Crown.
“He’s been an absolute godsend to have on the team,” López said, before remembering what this team has been through.
The pitcher knocked several times on the table in front of him.
“I mean, knock on wood that he can stay healthy and continue to do what he does,” López said. “He’s just been so huge for us.”
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