Braves outfielder Ender Inciarte and pitcher Kevin Gausman will face each other in a simulated game Sunday in Florida, a significant step as both rehabbing players work their way back into the team’s plans.
Inciarte has missed 40 games with a lumbar strain suffered in mid-May. Gausman was sidelined with plantar fasciitis on his right foot earlier this month. It marked Gausman’s second time on the injured list this season after he opened the season on the injured list because of right shoulder tendinitis.
Both players are at the team’s facilities in North Port, Florida, while the team continues its 10-game road trip. Sunday will mark a pivotal step for each.
Inciarte, a defensive wizard, opened the season as the Braves’ leadoff man, but eventually was dropped in the order. He was hitting .218 with a .300 on-base percentage through 40 games before his sore back landed him on the IL.
In his absence, the Braves promoted Austin Riley, who’s added another power dynamic to the lineup. There’s intrigue in how the team will handle Inciarte’s return, which likely will see him in a bench role. Even when Inciarte struggles at the plate, he can be an asset in the field.
Gausman won’t return to a defined role either. He never found his footing, producing a 6.21 ERA in 13 starts. His final three outings resulted in an 18.43 ERA. He’s looked nothing like his second-half self of 2018, when he had a sub-3.00 ERA in 10 starts for the National League East champs.
The Braves have four starters set – Mike Soroka, Max Fried, Julio Teheran and Dallas Keuchel - but the fifth spot is open after the Braves sent Mike Foltynewicz to Triple-A last weekend. The Braves started Bryse Wilson in his place Thursday.
Wilson, Kyle Wright and Touki Toussaint are among the candidates to fill those open starts. When he returns, Gausman could theoretically get another crack at the rotation or become a long-relief option for a team that already boasts several.
“We’ll stretch him out as a starter because you never know,” manager Brian Snitker said. “You can’t predict what’s going to happen. We’ll see where he fits in when he’s ready to come back.”
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