The Braves are dealing with another injury: Second baseman Ozzie Albies hurt his left wrist late during Sunday’s 6-2 loss to the Cardinals. He underwent testing after the game that revealed a left-wrist fracture. He is expected to miss approximately eight weeks, according to the team.
With the Cardinals’ Michael Siani attempting to steal second with two outs in the ninth, Braves catcher Travis d’Arnaud delivered an inaccurate throw to the base. Albies tried snagging it and caught his hand on Siani, bending his wrist. He exited immediately, replaced by veteran Zack Short.
Albies was being evaluated following the game, so he didn’t speak with reporters.
“It’s not good,” Snitker said. “A runner hit it and that’s never good. He’ll obviously go on the IL and we’ll go through moves and stuff this evening.”
Albies, 27, is hitting .258 with a .717 OPS in 90 games. He has eight homers and 46 RBIs. He’s a three-time All-Star who’s been a crucial contributor during the Braves’ string of six consecutive division titles, including their 2021 World Series championship. He’s already missed time this season with a fractured right big toe. He was also sidelined significant time in 2020 (right wrist bone bruise) and 2022 (fractured left foot, right pinkie finger fracture).
“It stinks, it sucks,” d’Arnaud said. “I feel I should’ve made a better throw so Ozzie would be here. It sucks.”
The Braves have been decimated by injuries throughout the season, from losing catcher Sean Murphy for significant time in the opening game, to seeing preseason Cy Young favorite Spencer Strider and preseason MVP favorite Ronald Acuña Jr. go down for the season, to most recently losing starter Max Fried (forearm neuritis) and Albies on Sunday.
“It gets to a point where (the injuries) are over the top here a little bit,” Snitker said. “You can’t cover it. Depth will cover to an extent, but after a while, it’s hard.”
The Braves have Short as veteran infield insurance. They could also summon top prospect Nacho Alvarez, who’s handled shortstop in the minors but could be a second-base option. Alvarez has excelled in Triple-A Gwinnett, hitting .336/.432/.575 with seven homers, six doubles and 24 RBIs in 28 games.
With two weeks until the trade deadline, the Braves could seek another infielder, as well. They were already expected to pursue adding an outfielder and perhaps another starting pitcher.
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