Jason Heyward felt so good Monday and Tuesday in a minor-league rehabilitation stint that he didn’t need batting practice Wednesday to prove it to Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez. Just a conversation.
It consisted of four words: “Are you ready?” and “Yes.”
Heyward was activated from the disabled list and returned to the Braves’ lineup for the first time since May 19 in Anaheim. He said his inflamed right shoulder is much improved after three weeks of rest and five days of working his way back into the feel of swinging a bat.
“I feel pain-free and able to make adjustments when I need to,” said Heyward, who went 1-for-6 with a double and a walk in two games for Triple-A Gwinnett. “... To cover the whole plate and take the same swing and not try to doctor it to what I feel like I need. [Before] I wasn’t able to use it the right way, but now it feels a lot more loose. There’s a lot less pressure in it. It feels like it should.”
Heyward said he had some soreness in his shoulder the first three days he started swinging again, but said the pain went away within hours. Overall, he’s said his right shoulder feels much better.
“Am I 100 percent?” Heyward said. “I’m ready to play a baseball game, and I don’t feel like I’m doing any damage to myself. I feel like I’m ready to be productive.”
The Braves optioned outfielder Matt Young back to Gwinnett to make room for Heyward on the roster.
Freeman improves
The Braves appear to have dodged a bullet with first baseman Freddie Freeman, whose oblique strain appears to be mild, just as it was diagnosed.
Freeman was out of the lineup for the second consecutive game Wednesday, but largely for precautionary reasons. He saw significant improvement Wednesday morning, took batting practice in the afternoon and was expected to be available to pinch hit in Wednesday’s game. He figured to be back in the lineup Thursday.
McLouth to rehab
Nate McLouth is headed to a rehabilitation assignment in Gwinnett on Thursday and could be ready to come off the disabled list as soon as Saturday or Sunday.
McLouth has been out since May 22 with a strained left oblique which he injured flinching as he took a pitch. He has tested it with what he called a game-speed “swing and miss” during a simulated game in extended spring training. On Wednesday, he cleared the last hurdle by running game speed to shag fly balls during batting practice.
The Braves want McLouth to get at least eight at-bats before he returns, so he hopes that means two games in Gwinnett, three at the most.
Pitcher suspended
Braves minor league pitcher Matthew Suschak was suspended 50 games by Major League Baseball for testing positive for the banned-substance amphetamine, the commissioner’s office announced Wednesday.
Suschak, a right-handed reliever for Single-A Rome, told the Braves he mistakenly ingested it by taking an over-the-counter supplement.
“It is unfortunate that this incident has occurred,” Braves general manager Frank Wren said. “We continually warn our young players of the potential dangers of ‘uncertified’ supplements. Hopefully this will serve to educate them and further substantiate the need for caution.”
