After placing two of their best players on the injured list, the banged-up Atlanta Braves now get ready to host the Cincinnati Reds on Monday to open a three-game series.
Atlanta’s Sunday started on a sour note when the club placed All-Star left-hander Max Fried on the 15-day IL retroactive to Thursday with left forearm neuritis.
“I don’t think (it’s serious) and neither does Max,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said on the severity of Fried’s injury.
“It’s something he said he felt when he was warming up at the All-Star Game. I don’t think anybody feels like it’s going to be an extended time.”
Hours later, though, Atlanta lost another star to a more serious injury.
In the ninth inning of the Braves’ 6-2 home loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, second baseman Ozzie Albies exited the game after he slammed his arm against a St. Louis base stealer.
It was revealed after the game that Albies fractured his left wrist and is expected to miss about two months.
“It didn’t look good,” Atlanta catcher Travis d’Arnaud said. “I tried to walk out there and see if he was alright, but obviously it wasn’t good. He knew. He was walking off the field right away.”
Albies, a three-time All-Star, is hitting .258 with eight home runs and 46 RBIs in 90 games this season.
Multiple sources reported Sunday night that the Braves are summoning infielder Nacho Alvarez Jr. from Triple-A Gwinnett to take Albies’ spot on the roster. Alvarez, 21, is batting .336 with seven home runs and 24 RBIs in 28 Triple-A games.
As for Fried’s replacement, Atlanta called up left-hander Dylan Dodd, who made seven starts for the Braves in 2023 and went 2-2 with a 7.60 ERA. Dodd is 2-7 with a 4.99 ERA in 17 games (15 starts) at Gwinnett.
Despite Fried’s absence, Atlanta still has two All-Stars in its rotation, including Reynaldo Lopez (7-3, 1.88 ERA), who will pitch Monday’s series opener.
Lopez has allowed no more than three runs in any of his 17 starts. In his last outing on July 13, he gave up three runs and a season-high 11 hits in a 4-0 road loss to the San Diego Padres.
The 30-year-old has made four career appearances (one start) against the Reds, going 1-0 with a 1.00 ERA. He faced them three times out of the bullpen in 2023 and worked three scoreless innings.
Lopez will square off against fellow right-hander and National League All-Star Hunter Greene (6-4, 3.34).
Greene will make his 20th start this season for Cincinnati and his first since July 11, when he held the host Colorado Rockies to one run on two hits over six innings. He walked two and struck out a season-high 10 to notch his eighth quality start and first win since June 14.
“It starts with establishing the fastball,” Reds manager David Bell said. “Also attacking the strike zone, throwing strikes.”
Greene, 24, has made two career starts against the Braves, going 1-0 with a 4.91 ERA. He faced Atlanta once last season and received a no-decision after allowing three runs and striking out 10 in six innings.
Cincinnati returned from the All-Star break and was swept on the road by the Washington Nationals. Sunday’s 5-2 loss marked the Reds’ fourth straight defeat. The Braves, meanwhile, lost two of three games to St. Louis.
This will be the first meeting of the year between the two clubs. Atlanta won five of six against Cincinnati last season, including a three-game home sweep.
–Field Level Media