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New York Times
an hour ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Braves lose Spencer Schwellenbach to IL with fractured elbow
ATLANTA — Spencer Schwellenbach was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a fractured pitching elbow Wednesday, the latest gut punch for a struggling Atlanta Braves team that's been besieged by injuries for the second year in a row. One day after the Braves transferred reigning Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale to the 60-day IL with a fractured rib cage, his co-ace joined him on Atlanta's crowded list of injured players, which already included starting pitchers Reynaldo López (shoulder surgery) and AJ Smith-Shawver (Tommy John surgery). Advertisement 'I mean, that sucks,' said Schwellenbach, 25, who had emerged as an elite pitcher in just his second MLB season and now isn't a certainty to pitch again this year. 'Sale went down and as a staff we knew we had to kind of pick up some slack, and now this happens. I feel horrible. 'I set a goal for myself to be healthy and throw a bunch of innings, and it just really sucks.' The Braves hope that Schwellenbach can return in September, but won't have a timetable for his recovery until the bone heals and he can resume throwing. Schwellenbach is 7-4 with a 3.09 ERA in 17 starts and leads NL qualifiers in strikeouts-to-walks ratio (6.0). He ranked third in the NL in innings (110 2/3), 11th in strikeouts (108) before Wednesday and was a solid candidate for an All-Star berth. 'I hate it for him,' Braves manager Brian Snitker said. 'The way he's going, the confidence that he has, what he's bringing to our club. The consistency in the starts and all that — he just keeps getting better. And it's tough for anybody when they go through that. I always hate it for the individual more than us, quite honestly.' Schwellenbach will be shut down for about four weeks and then be reexamined, at which point the skidding Braves would have to decide whether it's worth having their young standout push to get back for a potential postseason drive. 'It's very unfortunate,' Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr. said through an interpreter. 'Obviously when you're starting to put together a season like the one he was putting together, you hate to see it happen. But injuries are a part of the game. I think from our perspective, all we can do is hope for a speedy recovery from him.' If Schwellenbach doesn't feel good in about a month, he knows he might not pitch again in 2025 and would instead focus on rehabbing the elbow and preparing for next season. He fractured the coronoid bone in his elbow, and doctors said it was a freak injury and could have happened for any number of reasons. Advertisement Schwellenbach believes his recent uptick in velocity — his fastball reached 100 mph for the first time on his 25th birthday May 31 — might have led to the fracture, which he characterizied as a stress fracture or 'small, small fracture.' 'Maybe just the elbow wasn't ready for it,' Schwellenbach said. 'But who knows, like they said, it could have been anything.' He showed no signs of ailment in his Saturday start against the Philadelphia Phillies, when Schwellenbach had a season-high 12 strikeouts in seven innings and allowed just three hits, one run and one walk. He was 6-1 with a 2.60 ERA in his past 10 starts and had 71 strikeouts with 11 walks in 69 1/3 innings in that torrid stretch. He threw 90 pitches and told Snitker he wanted to go back out to pitch the eighth, a request that was denied. 'During the game, the second or third inning or whatever, I started feeling what I thought was tightness at the time,' said Schwellenbach, a former college shortstop and closer who had Tommy John surgery after the Braves drafted him in the second round in 2021. 'I've pitched through a lot. I pitched with a torn UCL in college, and it wasn't that (type of soreness). I just thought it was tightness. 'So I went as far as I could, and they took me out of the game. I was in the training room after and was just like, man, this feels really tight. Then woke up the next day, and I was like whoa, this is a little bit more than tightness. I came in, we talked about it, and decided to get some imaging.' He had an MRI Monday that revealed the fracture. Atlanta has lost five of its past six games to slip to fourth place in the NL East and ninth place in the wild-card standings, 11 games out of first in the division and 7 1/2 games behind the third and final wild-card spot before their Wednesday night game against the Los Angeles Angels. Advertisement Prospect Didier Fuentes, who turned 20 two weeks ago and is the youngest player in the majors, made his third start for Atlanta on Wednesday and lugged a 10.80 ERA into the game. He was supposed to make only a spot start at Miami on June 20, but that changed after Sale was diagnosed with two small fractures in his ribs that resulted from a May 18 diving defensive play he made in the ninth inning of a shutout bid that fell one out short. Just when things look like they can't get any worse…. 'It's getting worse,' Snitker saide. 'That (Schwellenbach injury) was a tough one. I think we started the year with five (starters) and lost four. It's just hard in any organization to cover that depth. So, yeah, it seems like every day it's something else. But we just gotta hang in there and give guys opportunities. 'I always say it's an opportunity for somebody to do something really good. We're gonna still come to the ballpark and fight the fight every day and prepare and go out there and win a ballgame.' Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos could make a trade or two to add starting pitching, and unless and until he does, the Braves will likely choose from in-house candidates including prospect Hurston Waldrep or Triple-A teammates Nathan Wiles, Davis Daniels and Jackson Stephens, among other minor leaguers and prospects. 'I keep looking and asking Alex,' Snitker said. 'Double A on up (are candidates), really. Hopefully somebody might (be ready). We're pushing young guys all the time and may end up that we have to do it again. We'll just assess the whole situation day-to-day and see where we're at.'

Associated Press
2 hours ago
- Sport
- Associated Press
Braves' Schwellenbach out with broken elbow. Profar returns from drug suspension and Verdugo cut
ATLANTA (AP) — Braves right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach broke his right elbow during a start last weekend and was placed on the 15-day injured list Wednesday as left fielder Jurickson Profar returned from an 80-game drug suspension and slumping outfielder Alex Verdugo was designated for assignment. Schwellenbach said he felt tightness while pitching for Atlanta against Philadelphia on Saturday, when he threw 90 pitches. He allowed one run and three hits over seven innings. He felt sore the following day and imaging Monday revealed a small fracture at the top of the elbow. Schwellenbach said he was told this was a freak accident and said he hopes to be back this season. A 25-year-old in his second big league season, Schwellenbach is 7-4 with a 3.09 ERA and leads the Braves in wins, WHIP (0.967) and innings (110 2/3). He has won six of his last seven decisions. Atlanta's rotation already was missing Chris Sale (broken rib), AJ Smith-Shawver (Tommy John surgery) and Reynaldo Lopez (shoulder surgery). 'We're pushing young guys all the time, and may end up that we have to do it again,' Braves manager Brian Snitker said. Schwellenbach was placed on the 15-day injured list retroactive to Sunday. Right-hander Daysbel Hernández, sidelined from the Braves since June 4 by right forearm inflammation, finished his rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett and was activated from the 15-day IL. Left-hander Austin Cox was recalled from the Stripers and right-hander Kevin Herget optioned to Gwinnett. Profar returned after an 80-game suspension announced March 31 following a positive test for Chorionic Gonadotrophin (hCG) in violation of the league's joint drug prevention and treatment program. He missed 93 days, causing him to lose exactly half his $12 million salary. He is ineligible for the postseason. 'I'm responsible,' said Profar, who addressed his teammates Wednesday. 'There's there's no excuses. I'm responsible for what goes into my body.' The 32-year-old was an All-Star and won a Silver Slugger last season when he batted .280 and set career highs with 24 homers and 85 RBIs for San Diego. He signed a three-year, $42 million contract with the Braves in the offseason. In his absence, Braves left fielders entered Wednesday last in the major leagues with two home runs and a .523 OPS. Verdugo agreed to a $1.5 million, one-year contract late in spring training. The 29-year-old made his big league season debut on April 18 and hit .239 with no homers and 12 RBIs in 56 games. ___ AP MLB:


New York Times
14 hours ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Grant Holmes dominant again, Braves offense terrible, Brian Snitker (very) frustrated
ATLANTA — The spiraling Atlanta Braves wasted another impressive start from Grant Holmes on Tuesday, and manager Brian Snitker sounded as if frustrations had reached a new level, or at least like he needed to share something that was eating at him. The Los Angeles Angels used a four-run eighth inning against the Atlanta bullpen to win 4-0, handing the Braves their fifth loss in six games and third shutout in five and dropping them to fourth place in the National League East, behind the perpetually rebuilding Miami Marlins. Advertisement The Braves were 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position, which isn't unusual for them. What made it notable was when Snitker was asked afterward if it's a mental thing with Atlanta's hitters and he responded by pointing to technology. Too much of it. 'I'm telling you, this is the mental game,' he said. 'All of it. It's about confidence and feel. I think we probably overwhelm ourselves with mechanics and video and all that kind of stuff. We've made it a really mental game, I think, in the industry. 'They didn't have all this information, they didn't have all the video and whatever, and those guys put up unbelievable numbers and made it to the Hall of Fame. But now we're kind of overanalyzing everything.' Paralysis by analysis, as it's referred to in sports. Snitker didn't use that terminology, but he didn't have to. He also didn't say who 'they' were, but he didn't have to. It was all the former Braves greats. Yes, the season has spiraled to that point for the Braves, who are a mediocre team that looks much worse a lot of nights. They have a new hitting coach after firing Kevin Seitzer following his 10th season. That's not working out well, to say the least. Now, analytics feel like an albatross for the manager. It's bad. The Braves have lost three of the first four games on this homestand and are 11 1/2 games behind the division-leading Philadelphia Phillies and 9 1/2 games behind the New York Mets. And yes, they are a half-game behind the Marlins. Repeat: The Braves trail the Marlins. Atlanta also slipped to ninth in the NL wild-card standings. Analyze that. Holmes had 10 strikeouts in six scoreless innings Tuesday, after posting a career-high 15 strikeouts three starts ago in 6 1/3 innings of a 10-1 loss to the Colorado Rockies on June 15. In that one, he was charged with two earned runs, including one after he left the game. And so, he has 25 strikeouts with six hits and two earned runs allowed in 12 1/3 innings of those two starts, and Atlanta lost both. Once again, the bullpen and offense failed him Tuesday, but Holmes handled it with typical aplomb. 👏👏👏#BravesCountry — Atlanta Braves (@Braves) July 2, 2025 'We don't come to the field and expect to not hit or not pitch well,' he said. 'We come to the field and we expect to pitch well and hit well. So it's just the life of baseball. It can be so rewarding and suck so much at the same time. So, it is what it is.' When the Braves shuffled their rotation plans and had Holmes move up a day to start Tuesday instead of rookie Didier Fuentes, there was immediate speculation that they would start someone else in place of Fuentes. Advertisement Snitker said no; they just wanted to have Holmes pitch on regular rest (four days) rather than have the extra day after the team was off Monday. Holmes, who spent a decade in the minor leagues with a few organizations before making his MLB debut last summer with the Braves, has improved so rapidly and to such a degree that he has become one of Atlanta's top three starters while Chris Sale is sidelined — and arguably even if Sale wasn't out. The right-hander has been that good. Holmes' recent statistics compare favorably with those of Spencer Strider in Strider's first season after elbow surgery. Holmes held the Angels to three hits and three walks, his second scoreless outing in his past three starts. He threw 106 pitches and generated 54 swings, including 27 whiffs, the fourth-highest swing-and-miss total by a Braves pitcher since tracking began in 2008. Holmes, who also had 25 swings-and-misses in the Colorado game, joined the Detroit Tigers' Tarik Skubal, the reigning American League Cy Young Award winner, as the only pitchers in the majors this season to have two starts with at least 25 swings-and-misses. After opening the season with one relief appearance, then posting a 4.70 ERA in his first seven starts, Holmes has carved a 2.70 ERA in his past 10 starts with 73 strikeouts and 25 walks in 56 2/3 innings. And in his past four, he has a 1.56 ERA with 36 strikeouts and 13 walks in 23 innings. But the punchless Braves are just 6-11 in his starts. Barring a late change in plans, Fuentes is set to make his first home start Wednesday, after going 0-2 with a 10.80 ERA in his first two starts, which came on the trip last week in Miami and New York (against the Mets). He just turned 20 and is a year younger than any other major leaguer this season. He had only six minor-league starts above the High-A level — one in Triple A — before being thrust into what was supposed to be a major-league spot start in Miami. Advertisement Then Sale was diagnosed with a fractured rib cage, and Fuentes stayed to make another start in New York, which didn't go well. The Mets feasted on his poorly located pitches for eight hits, six runs and two homers in 3 1/3 innings. Still, the Braves like what they've seen in his stuff — he throws in the upper 90s and has a good breaking ball — and maturity, if not his command. But given his age and inexperience, his results can't be considered surprising. The Braves traded for bullpen depth Tuesday, getting Hunter Stratton from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for a minor-league outfielder and cash, and transferred Sale to the 60-day IL to open a 40-man roster spot for Stratton. Moving Sale from the 15-day to the extended IL was expected, even if perhaps disheartening to optimistic Braves fans who hoped the lefty ace would be back before late August. That wasn't realistic, since he's recovering from a fractured rib cage that happened on a diving fielding play June 18. The Braves had not given any timetable on Sale, but a fracture was always going to mean at least a month of not throwing while the bones heal (Sale said he has two 'small fractures'). And he will need to rebuild arm strength and stamina and do an injury-rehab stint before he's activated. So, now we know officially that he'll be out at least until Aug. 19. The Braves can only hope they've gone on an extended surge to be legit playoff contenders before then. Stratton was optioned to Triple A for the time being. The 28-year-old righty has a 96 mph fastball as well as a sinker and slider. He posted a 3.58 ERA in 36 appearances as a rookie in 2024 with 33 strikeouts and seven walks in 37 2/3 innings. But this season, Stratton spent most of three months in Triple A, making just three appearances with Pittsburgh and posting a 23.63 ERA with 10 hits and seven runs allowed in 2 2/3 innings. Advertisement In the trade, the Pirates got outfielder Titus Dumitru, 22, a 16th-round draft pick by the Braves in 2024 out of New Mexico State University. He hit .227 with four homers, 17 stolen bases and a .638 OPS in 91 games over two seasons, including 64 games this season at High-A Rome. Slumping center fielder Michael Harris II returned to the lineup Tuesday after being given weekend games off for a mental break. Harris snapped an 0-for-22 skid when he tripled to lead off the fifth inning, but he was stranded there when Nick Allen followed with a popup and Ronald Acuña Jr. struck out (Acuña was 0-for-4 with four strikeouts). Money Mike!#InvescoQQQ | @InvescoUS — Atlanta Braves (@Braves) July 2, 2025 After getting behind in the count 3-0 to Matt Olson, Angels starter Tyler Anderson intentionally walked him to bring up Marcell Ozuna, who flied out to end the inning with runners on the corners in a scoreless game, the Braves having failed to score after a leadoff triple. Harris hit .148 with four extra-base hits, 25 strikeouts and a .426 OPS in 25 games in June. He has not walked since May 18, a career-high stretch of 135 plate appearances without a walk. That's staggering. He entered Tuesday with the lowest OBP (.238) and OPS (.559) among all MLB qualifiers, though Harris' defensive metrics ranked among NL outfield leaders. (Photo of Grant Holmes: Edward M. Pio Roda / Getty Images)
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
As Angels come to town, Braves send their support to former coach Ron Washington
The Atlanta Braves will host a three-game series with the Los Angeles Angels at Truist Park this week, but one notable figure will be missing in the visiting dugout. The Angels will be without their manager Ron Washington. The beloved former Braves third base coach will miss the rest of the 2025 season for medical reasons. Advertisement [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Braves manager Brian Snitker told Channel 2's Alison Mastrangelo that he has spoken to Washington a number of times in the days since his announcement. 'I've talk to him live, I've text with him, I've told him, you know what, whatever he does I'm gonna be praying for him and hoping for the best because he's a really good friend and I know how this affects him and we're all concerned that you know, and all we want is for him to get, take the right steps and get back healthy and doing what he loves," Snitker said. Washington spent seven seasons on the Braves coaching staff and played an integral role during the team's 2021 World Series championship run. The players and coaches love him from his infield warm-up drills to his pregame notes. The Braves and Angels will play Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night at 7:15 p.m. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]


New York Times
5 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
The Atlanta Braves' lineup is a mess, and there are no easy fixes
ATLANTA — Having your team's leading home-run hitter, who's also one of its slowest runners, bat second normally would not make any sense. But in the case of the Atlanta Braves and their mostly anemic and wholly disappointing offense, Matt Olson in the 2-hole is the best hope of preventing opponents from constantly pitching around superstar Ronald Acuña Jr. Advertisement Olson was in the second spot in the lineup for the seventh game in a row Friday for a rain-delayed series opener against the Philadelphia Phillies, after Austin Riley did it for 52 games with uninspiring results and Alex Verdugo and others also stumbled there. 'It's challenging. You hit it right on the head,' Braves manager Brian Snitker said Friday afternoon, when asked about making a lineup with so many struggling pieces. 'We move guys around and hopefully give them different looks. And it's been challenging from the get-go. It's been hard. 'We haven't been able to get three or four guys going in one stretch. And that's what it's going to take for us to put something together. So, just kind of keep fighting the fight, and eventually we'll get the right mix and get 'er going.' That's where things stand with Atlanta's offense, folks. They keep trying to go on a good run, saying the right things about how they believe it'll come. So far, it has not. The Braves, who rank between 15th and 2oth in most offensive categories, have been worse lately, wasting numerous strong pitching performances and the opportunity to make up ground in the National League East and wild-card standings. They remained eighth in the NL wild-card race with a 37-43 record and the NL's fifth-lowest winning percentage before facing the Phillies, who were a half-game behind the NL East-leading New York Mets entering Friday and 9 1/2 games ahead of the Braves. Are the Braves feeling increased pressure at the season's halfway point, with their streak of eight consecutive playoff appearances in serious jeopardy? 'We got pressure in this game always, so it's just a matter of going out there and playing our game,' said Riley, who had one home run and a .669 OPS in his past 19 games, with 26 strikeouts in 78 at-bats. 'We obviously know that (facing a) division rival, it's very important. I think the main thing is just going out there and playing our game. We've been playing some good baseball here recently, so just try to try to build off of that.' Advertisement Good baseball? They've pitched well, but the Braves' hitting has remained inconsistent. They had but three singles in the series finale Thursday of a four-game split at New York. After Mets starter Griffin Canning tore his Achilles in the third inning, three relievers shut out the Braves over the final 6 1/3 innings of a 4-0 loss. That completed a 3-4 trip that began with a series loss at Miami. The Braves entered Friday batting .229 in June, fourth-worst in the majors, with a .664 OPS that was better than only five teams, including the Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals in the NL. Hitting Acuña anywhere other than leadoff isn't an option because: A.) It's where he loves to hit and has long thrived, and B.) There is no other legit leadoff option in this lineup. For example, there were only 17 major leaguers with an OPS below .600 in 200 or more plate appearances before Friday, and three were Braves: Michael Harris II's .564 (fifth-lowest), Nick Allen's .567 (tied for seventh-lowest) and Verdugo's .598. Not much better were Ozzie Albies (.618) and Eli White (.661), the other half of a punchless left-field platoon with Verdugo. They'll have another 2-hole option Wednesday when left fielder Jurickson Profar returns from an 80-game PED suspension, barring any rainouts, which would push back his eligible date. But Profar, coming off a now-tainted career-best season with San Diego, will need to show he still has pop and can make pitchers pay for pitching around Acuña, or else Olson likely stays in the 2-hole. Olson and Acuña have been the only Braves hitting consistently in June. Olson entered Friday with a 27-game on-base streak in which he batted .303 with 23 RBIs and a .927 OPS. Acuña had sizzled with a .369 average, nine homers and a 1.143 OPS in 31 games since returning from a year-long rehab following knee surgery. Advertisement Rookie catcher Drake Baldwin — four homers, 11 RBIs and a .784 OPS in 18 June games before Friday —was the only other Brave with an OPS higher than .666 this month. Olson said of Acuña, 'He has no doubt been a spark plug for us. But, yeah, we want to have as much traffic on the bases as we can, all the way through the lineup.' Unlike the city they represent, the Braves have not had nearly enough traffic. A big part of that problem is decreased production from three players signed to long-term extensions a few years ago, players expected to be big performers annually: Riley, Albies and Harris. Riley and Albies are 28 and should be in the prime of their careers, and Harris is 24 and should just be approaching his prime. Instead, they all are playing as if they're 10 years older. Riley averaged 36 homers and 99 RBIs during 2021-2023 while hitting .286 with an .878 OPS and 135 OPS+. Since the beginning of 2024, he's hit .262 with a .769 OPS and 112 OPS+ and had 31 homers and 97 RBIs in 190 games. Unlike last season, when slowed by injuries including an oblique strain, Riley has been healthy this season and had only 12 homers and a .107 OPS+ in 80 games before Friday, with 100 strikeouts that would shatter his career-high 172 strikeouts if he were to continue that pace. Still, no other Braves hitters have seen declines as precipitous as Albies and Harris. Albies, a three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger Award winner, entered Friday with a .221 average, six homers and 28 RBIs to go with a .618 OPS that was 160 points below his .778 career OPS. He lugged a 73 OPS+ into the Phillies series, which meant that Albies' offensive production was 27 percent lower than a baseline-average MLB player (100 OPS+). Just two years ago, he hit .280 with 33 homers, 109 RBIs and a 126 OPS+ as part of the Braves' record-setting 2023 offense. Advertisement He's been so underwhelming lately, it no longer seems a given that the Braves will pick the $7 million option on Albies' contract for 2026, though the $4 million buyout could sway a decision to bring him back and hope he figures something out, if he hasn't between now and then. Albies might want to try a lighter bat, since the multiple injuries the switch-hitting second baseman has sustained over the years, including wrist and elbow fractures, might have taken a toll. He swings one of the heaviest bats on the team despite being smaller than any Brave other than Allen. Harris' situation is especially difficult, as he remains one of baseball's elite defensive center fielders, his latest home run-saving catch coming this week against the Mets. But his offense has been in steady decline since his NL Rookie of the Year season in 2022, when Harris hit .297 with 19 homers and an .853 OPS in 115 games. That slipped to .293/18/.808 in 138 games in 2023, .264/16/.722 in 110 games in 2024 (when he missed two months with a hamstring strain), and this year's alarming .215/6/.564 in all 80 Braves games before Friday. Not only has Harris' OPS+ plunged to 56 — it was 133 in his rookie season — but his .241 OBP was the lowest among MLB qualifiers before Friday. Harris has reached this OBP nadir — at least he and the Braves hope it doesn't go lower — by swinging at far more pitches out of the strike zone than he did before, perhaps trying to get the ball in the air as he's been instructed by first-year hitting coach Tim Hyers, and which Harris did for a brief period recently. Lately, he's reverted to grounding out repeatedly in big situations, striking out at the highest rate of his career, and walking at an extremely low rate, including an almost unfathomable zero walks in the past 33 games before Friday. Yes, no walks in 133 plate appearances since his two-walk game May 18 at Boston. Advertisement In his past 12 games before Friday, Harris was 3-for-42 (.071) with 10 strikeouts and a .186 OPS. Because Harris has fewer than five years of MLB service and has minor-league options, the Braves could send him to Triple A. They aren't ready to make that move, at least not yet, in part because they don't think they have a better option to play center, considering what Harris brings defensively. Michael Harris II FULL EXTENSION! — Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) June 28, 2025 'Just expanding the strike zone probably too much,' Snitker said of Harris' woes. 'That's because guys want to hit. But you have to adjust. And it's not just him. I mean, Michael's not where he wants to be, but we got a few guys; I'm not gonna just single one guy out. He's such a talented guy. And as I said, God bless him. I mean, the kid, he never takes (his hitting struggles) to the field, and he can help you win a game defensively. 'He's not doing what he wants offensively. But, man, when he's playing defense, you'd think he was hitting .350. I got a lot of respect for him to be able to do that.' Still, if Harris continues to struggle to the degree he has lately, might the Braves consider sending him down when Profar is activated next week and takes over in left field? They hope it doesn't come to that, but it's a move they might have to consider for the good of everyone involved. (Top photo of Austin Riley: Todd Kirkland / Getty Images)