CINCINNATI — The Braves hope that Rio Ruiz eventually will develop into a major league third baseman. But the rookie will have to do so as a part-time player for now because manager Brian Snitker plans to play Ruiz off the bench now that veteran Adonis Garcia is back from injury.
Garcia returned from the disabled list Friday and was in the lineup against the Reds. Snitker said he will remain there as the primary third baseman, with Ruiz getting playing time in spots.
Snitker said the team doesn’t want Ruiz to languish on the bench.
“He won’t,” Snitker said. “I will try to do the best I can to get opportunities for both of them. Hopefully we’ll get a lot out of the position.”
Ruiz, who bats lefty, had been a lineup regular while Garcia recovered from a left Achilles tendinitis. Garcia bats right-handed but Snitker said a straight platoon at third base isn’t feasible because the Braves rarely face left-handed pitchers.
Instead, Snitker said he would go with Garcia as the regular third baseman with Ruiz filling in occasionally. He said “it’s not going to be easy” to find playing time for both players.
“I’m going to have to try to balance it somehow,” Snitker said.
Ruiz, 23, played in 14 games (12 starts) while Garcia was out and batted .244 (11-for-45) with a .306 on-base percentage, 15 strikeouts and three hits for extra bases. The Braves acquired him from the Astros in January 2015 as part of the Evan Gattis trade, and he was their top third-base prospect before the team drafted Austin Riley and signed Kevin Maitan (who could end up at third).
Garcia, 32, entered Friday hitting .237 with a .278 on-base percentage and .348 slugging percentage. He also was the primary third baseman for the Braves in 2016 and hit .273 with a .311 OBP and .406 SLG.
