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Austin Riley Undergoes Season-Ending Core Surgery

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The Braves announced today that third baseman Austin Riley has undergone core injury surgery, which will end his season, though he is expected to return for spring training 2026. He is already on the 10-day injured list. He’ll be transferred to the 60-day IL once the club needs his 40-man roster spot.

The club also announced their previously-reported claim of right-hander Cal Quantrill, with righty Dane Dunning optioned in a corresponding move. They also activated outfielder Jake Fraley, another waiver claimee, and recalled left-hander Dylan Dodd. In corresponding moves for those two, they optioned right-hander Connor Seabold to Triple-A and placed infielder Luke Williams on the 10-day IL due to a strained left oblique, retroactive to August 19th.

In the short term, the Riley news isn’t a huge deal for Atlanta. They are playing out the string on a lost season. They are 58-69 and 9.5 games back of a playoff spot. As mentioned, Riley was already on the injured list, having landed there earlier this month due to an abdominal strain. Losing him for the rest of 2025 doesn’t mean much.

The more notable concern is the long term. This the second straight year that Riley will finish on the injured list. In 2024, his last appearance was August 18th, when he was hit on the hand by a pitch. He suffered a fracture and wasn’t able to return down the stretch.

From 2021 to 2023, Riley appeared in at least 159 games each season. He slashed a combined .286/.354/.525 for a 136 wRC+ over that time. FanGraphs credited him with at least 5.1 wins above replacement in each of those campaigns.

His contributions since then have been more modest. Last year, even before the hand fracture, he wasn’t at his best. He had a .256/.322/.461 line and 114 wRC+, still 14% above league average but not up to his previous standard. This year, he has twice gone on the injured list due to abdominal issues and has now gone under the knife. He will finish the year with a .260/.309/.428 line and a 103 wRC+.

Atlanta has seen a number of players struggle or get injured this year, which has naturally made the team worse. A lot of those players, including Riley, have been locked in by long-term extensions. That means the club can’t do much apart from hope that their guys bounce back and perform better going forward. Riley’s ten-year, $212MM contract runs through 2033, so he’s still a huge part of the club’s future. Ideally, getting over this issue and coming into 2026 healthy will get him back on track, though time will tell if will come to pass or not.

Photo courtesy of Dale Zanine, Imagn Images

Braves Claim Cal Quantrill

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The Braves have claimed right-hander Cal Quantrill off waivers from the Marlins, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. It was reported earlier this week that the Fish had put the righty on waivers in an attempt to dump his salary. It appears their division rival has helped them out in that regard. Atlanta has open 40-man space but would need to open an active roster spot for Quantrill once he reports to the team.

Quantrill, 30, is a veteran back-end starter. He doesn’t strike out a ton of guys but avoids walks and hasn’t been hurt very often. The Marlins gave him a one-year, $3.5MM deal coming into 2025. In return, he gave them 109 2/3 innings over 24 starts. His 5.50 earned run average and 17.4% strikeout rate aren’t amazing figures, but he had a good stretch in the middle, sandwiched around some rough outings.

At the end of April, Quantrill had made six starts and was sitting on an ERA of 8.10. He then settled in for three good months, making 15 starts over May, June and July with a 3.55 ERA, 21.3% strikeout rate and 5.6% walk rate. But he was then lit up for an 11.25 ERA in his three most recent appearances.

The Fish are playing out the string on another non-competitive season and have some other pitchers they could call upon to take Quantrill’s spot, so they put him on waivers to get out of paying the rest of his contract. Kevin Barral of Fish on First reports that Ryan Gusto, acquired in the Jesús Sánchez trade, will be recalled to start Friday’s game against the Blue Jays.

While the Marlins’ end of this transaction makes sense, it’s surprising to see Atlanta put in the claim. That club definitely needs innings with their injury-battered rotation but they are also winding down a lost season. They are 58-69, 9.5 games out of a playoff spot, two games behind the Marlins. Quantrill is still owed a little more than $700K, with $500K of performance bonuses also in the deal.

It’s unknown how Quantrill can trigger the bonuses but the $700K is notable on its own. It’s not really a ton of money relative to MLB payrolls but it’s odd that Atlanta is incurring that extra cost for a lost season. Quantrill is an impending free agent, so there’s no long-term benefit, unless the club wants to get a close-up look at him and offer him a deal for next year.

But as mentioned, in the short term, they could definitely use solid rotation innings. They have each of Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver, Reynaldo López and Grant Holmes on the injured list. Sale is the only one in that group who seems to have a shot at returning this season.

That leaves the club with a rotation consisting of Spencer Strider, Hurston Waldrep, Bryce Elder, Joey Wentz and Erick Fedde. Both Wentz and Fedde were recently scooped up after being cast off by other teams and now Quantrill joins them in that category. Wentz and Fedde are out of options, so one of them could end up in a long relief role or designated for assignment when Quantrill joins the club. It’s also possible Elder gets optioned down to Triple-A. Sale got up to four innings on his most recent rehab start and will be back in the mix soon as well.

Photo courtesy of Jordan Godfree, Imagn Images

Braves Claim Jake Fraley

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The Braves announced that they have claimed outfielder Jake Fraley off waivers from the Reds. Cincinnati designated him for assignment a couple of days ago. Atlanta has multiple 40-man vacancies. They will need to open an active roster spot once Fraley reports to the team, as he can’t be optioned to the minors without his consent.

Fraley has had some major league success but isn’t having his best season. He has had a couple of stints on the injured list, one due to left calf tenderness and another due to a right shoulder sprain. Those injuries limited him to 67 games with the Reds. His .232/.332/.387 batting line translated to a 98 wRC+, indicating he was 2% below league average. He only stole four bases, despite getting at least 20 in the previous two seasons.

The Reds squeezed him off their roster, opting to give some of his playing time to Will Benson as they are trying to make a playoff push. Atlanta is in a different situation, as they are out of contention this year. Fraley can be retained for 2026, so they can give him some playing time down the stretch to see if he’s worth tendering a contract for next year.

His career has had ups and downs but there are things to like in his profile, particularly his ability to succeed with the platoon advantage. A left-handed hitter, he has a career .260/.344/.434 line and 112 wRC+ against righties. Against southpaws, that line is just .172/.269/.234, leading to a 45 wRC+. As mentioned, he can swipe a few bags as well. He only has four this year but got 21 in 2023 and 20 last year.

Defensively, the reviews are mixed. Playing all three spots, he’s been credited with four Outs Above Average in his career. Defensive Runs Saved gives him a far worse grade of -9. However, DRS hates his work in center and right field but likes him in left.

Fraley is making $3.125MM this year and, as mentioned, can be retained for next year via arbitration. This year’s injuries will limit his ability to earn a massive raise. Atlanta evidently feels there’s a possibility to him serving a role on next year’s club, so they have grabbed him today.

Atlanta’s current outfield mix includes Ronald Acuña Jr., Jurickson Profar, Michael Harris II, Eli White and Vidal Bruján. They have Marcell Ozuna as the designated hitter on a regular basis but he’s an impending free agent. It’s possible the club wants to use next year’s DH spot to get more at-bats for the catching duo of Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy, but they could also rotate some outfielders through there. It’s been speculated that they might make Murphy available in trades this winter to give the job to Baldwin and clear some payroll space. Others have speculated that they might make Profar available since he got hit with a PED suspension shortly after signing. Trading either would open up some more playing time for others.

Those are questions still to be answered in the long run. Atlanta is not committed to including Fraley in next year’s plans as they could always non-tender him after 2024. For now, Fraley will jump into the current outfield mix. Perhaps Acuña will get some time off his feet down the stretch since his health has been touch-and-go this year. He was still recovering from last year’s ACL tear at the start of the 2025 campaign. More recently, he missed a few weeks due to a calf strain.

Photo courtesy of Ken Blaze, Imagn Images

Braves Re-Sign Carlos Carrasco To Minor League Deal

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The Braves re-signed veteran righty Carlos Carrasco to a minor league contract after designating him for assignment last week, as first indicated on the transaction log at MiLB.com. Carrasco cleared waivers, briefly elected free agency, and now returns on a new minor league where he’ll serve as a depth arm for an injury-plagued Braves staff. Carrasco will head to Triple-A Gwinnett for the time being.

Carrasco opened the season with the Yankees after signing a minor league deal in the winter. He was roughed up for a 5.91 ERA in eight games (six starts) before being removed from the Yankees’ 40-man roster. He stuck around with their Triple-A club until an Atlanta team that was desperate for innings after a series of rotation injuries acquired Carrasco for cash prior to the trade deadline.

The 38-year-old Carrasco tossed a quality start against the Reds on deadline day but was tagged for six runs in 5 2/3 frames his next time out and six more runs in just two innings in his third start with the Braves. He wound up pitching 13 2/3 innings overall and logging a 9.88 ERA during his brief run with Atlanta. Combined with his earlier Yankees struggles, Carrasco has limped to a 7.09 ERA in 45 2/3 innings this season.

Carrasco made 29 solid starts for the 2022 Mets (3.97 ERA, 152 innings) but has now struggled greatly in three consecutive major league seasons. He’s pitched 239 1/3 MLB frames dating back to 2023 but logged only a 6.36 earned run average as his velocity, strikeout rate, walk rate and home run rate have all trended in the wrong direction.

The Atlanta rotation currently includes Spencer Strider, Erick Fedde, Bryce Elder, Hurston Waldrep and Joey Wentz, although Chris Sale is on the mend and expected to return soon. Sale tossed 56 pitches over four innings of one-run ball in his second Triple-A rehab start yesterday. He’s been out since mid-June due to fractures in his ribcage.

Braves Outright Davis Daniel

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The Braves sent right-hander Davis Daniel outright to Triple-A Gwinnett, according to the MLB.com transaction log. The tracker also indicates that Carlos Carrasco elected free agency after being designated for assignment on Thursday. Daniel had not previously been DFA, so his removal from the 40-man roster drops their count to 37.

Atlanta acquired Daniel in a minor offseason trade. The Auburn product had been designated for assignment by the Angels, who flipped him to the Braves for minor league pitcher Mitch Farris. Daniel has spent much of the season on optional assignment to Triple-A. He has made three big league appearances (two starts) and allowed six runs on nine hits and seven walks over 10 innings. The minor league results haven’t been a whole lot better. Daniel has pitched to a 5.32 earned run average with a subpar 18.8% strikeout rate through 88 frames with Gwinnett.

Over parts of three big league campaigns, Daniel carries 5.13 ERA across 52 2/3 innings. This is his fifth season in Triple-A. He owns a 5.40 mark in 67 appearances at the top minor league level. This is Daniel’s first career outright, so he doesn’t have the ability to decline the assignment. He’ll remain with the Stripers for the remainder of the season.

The Braves acquired Carrasco to patch together a couple starts. He took the ball three times but was tagged for 15 runs while averaging fewer than five innings per appearance. The 38-year-old righty has an ERA above 7.00 between the Yankees and Braves. He’ll be limited to minor league offers if he intends to continue pitching.

The Braves’ Bleak Middle Infield Outlook

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Not long ago, everything seemed to be working for the Braves. They were a player development factory not only churning out quality big leaguer after quality big leaguer -- but frequently signing those players to long-term extensions. As recently as 2022, Atlanta had nearly an entirely homegrown roster full of stars who'd penned long-term deals. Michael Harris II and Spencer Strider burst onto the scene in '22, and Atlanta had Austin Riley, Ozzie Albies, Matt Olson, Ronald Acuña Jr. all signed long-term. Harris and Strider joined the group midway through their rookie seasons.

There were some exceptions. Freddie Freeman had walked in free agency. By the end of the 2022 season, it increasingly seemed as though Swanson and Max Fried would follow suit. They eventually did, but with young infielders like Vaughn Grissom and Nacho Alvarez Jr. impressing in the minors, there was some hope on the horizon.

Much of that core remains in place, but there are far more questions on the roster now. There's no area where that's more true than in the middle infield. With the Braves seemingly facing a budget crunch this past offseason, they made a low-cost addition of defensive standout Nick Allen to hold things down at shortstop while hoping for a rebound from Albies after a pedestrian 2024 showing. It hasn't worked out all that well, particularly at second base, where Albies' struggles have mounted to the point that many fans would prefer to move on entirely -- despite what once appeared a pair of extraordinarily affordable $7MM club options on Albies' 2026 and 2027 seasons.

How will the Braves handle their middle infield situation moving forward? Let's look ahead to the offseason.

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Braves Activate Ronald Acuña Jr., Outright Sandy León

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The Braves announced Friday that they’ve reinstated star outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. from the injured list. In order to open a roster spot, veteran catcher Sandy León was assigned outright to Triple-A Gwinnett after clearing waivers.

Acuña missed nearly three weeks with a Grade 1 strain in his right calf. It’s the second IL stint of the season for the five-time All-Star and former National League MVP. He opened the season on the shelf while finishing off the rehab from last year’s surgery to repair a torn left ACL.

Between those two IL stints, Acuña was in vintage form. He came to the plate 238 times and slashed a sensational .306/.429/.577 with 14 home runs, nine doubles, a triple and four stolen bases. Acuña walked in a massive 17.6% of his plate appearances, averaged 92.3 mph off the bat and logged a massive 53% hard-hit rate. By measure of wRC+, he was 78% better than the league-average hitter at the plate.

It’s a generally lost season for the Braves, but Acuña surely wants to get a healthy finish under his belt so he can feel good heading into next season. Injuries have hobbled him repeatedly in recent years. He averaged only 102 games per season from 2021-24.

As for the veteran León, he’s been on the roster since July 21 but appeared in only two games and took just one plate appearance. He’s been an emergency third catching option for manager Brian Snitker, but Atlanta has been plugging catchers Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy into the lineup on a daily basis, rotating that pair between the catcher and designated hitter spot. That’s left minimal opportunity for the 36-year-old León, who hit .183/.250/.379 in 169 Triple-A plate appearances this season.

León is a veteran of 13 major league seasons. He’s rarely provided much help with the bat in that time — evidenced by a career .208/.276/.310 batting line in the majors — but has nonetheless carved out a lengthy career on the strength of his defensive acumen, game-calling skills and leadership. He has the right to reject his outright assignment if he chooses.

Joe Jimenez Shut Down For Rest Of 2025 Season; Lopez, Schwellenbach Not Likely To Return

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Joe Jimenez was shut down from throwing last week due to renewed soreness in his surgically repaired left knee.  This seemed like a major obstacle to Jimenez’s chances of returning to action before the end of the 2025 season, and Braves manager Brian Snitker confirmed today to reporters (including Gabriel Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) that Jimenez indeed won’t be back in action this year.  It also seems like injured starters Reynaldo Lopez and Spencer Schwellenbach have thrown their last pitches of 2025, as Snitker was doubtful either right-hander would be activated from the 60-day injured list before season’s end.

After pitching through knee soreness through much of 2024, Jimenez underwent surgery in late October to address what ended up being rather significant cartilage damage.  Jimenez was given a broad recovery timeframe of 8-12 months, so an entirely lost season was always a possibility for the veteran right-hander.  Some hopes were raised for a return when Jimenez started throwing bullpen sessions in early July, yet he wasn’t able to advance to the minor league rehab stage before his knee again began bothering him.  It doesn’t appear as if the issue is anything beyond mere discomfort, so Jimenez should still be on pace to be fully healthy by the start of Spring Training.

Following six mostly inconsistent seasons with the Tigers, Jimenez hit a new level of performance after Atlanta acquired the reliever in a trade during the 2022-23 offseason.  Jimenez posted a 3.04 ERA over 56 1/3 innings with the Braves in 2023, which earned him a three-year, $26MM extension to remain in Atlanta just before he was about to test the free agent market.  The first season of that extension saw Jimenez deliver a 2.62 ERA over 68 2/3 frames in 2024, giving him an overall 2.81 ERA, 30.1% strikeout rate, and 7.2% walk rate over 125 total innings in a Braves uniform.

Jimenez’s knee surgery ended up being a harbinger for an injury-riddled season for the Atlanta pitching staff.  Spencer Strider (who began the year on the IL recovering from an internal brace surgery) is the only member of the Braves’ first-choice rotation that is currently healthy, as Lopez, Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver, and reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale are all on the 60-day injured list.  Sale is the only one of that group that might pitch again in 2025, as he is set to make his second minor league rehab start on Sunday as he tries to work his way back from a ribcage fracture.

Smith-Shawver underwent a Tommy John surgery in June, so his entire 2026 season could be in jeopardy as well as what remained of his 2025 campaign.  There isn’t much surprise that Lopez and Schwellenbach have also both been unofficially ruled out, as since the Braves are out of the playoff race, there isn’t much value in having either pitcher go through a full rehab process just to pitch a few meaningless innings in late September.

Lopez made just a single start before undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder in early April.  This came with a shutdown period of 8-12 weeks, and while Lopez has started throwing, he won’t have time to build up his arm for a full starter’s workload.  Burns suggests that if Lopez is able to return, it would only be in a relief role, which might only happen if the Braves are considering moving the right-hander back to the bullpen in the wake of his injury situation.  Lopez’s return to a full-time starter’s role in 2024 worked brilliantly when he was healthy (1.99 ERA in 135 2/3 IP), but he dealt with forearm and shoulder issues in the latter part of that season, prior to the surgery that has entirely marred his 2025 season.

Schwellenbach helped paper over some of Atlanta’s rotation woes when he produced a 3.09 ERA over 110 2/3 innings this year, but the injury bug bit him too in the form of a small right elbow fracture in early July.  He was almost immediately moved to the 60-day IL in the wake of that injury and isn’t eligible to return until the first week of September at the earliest, but it instead looks like the right-hander will get an early jump on his offseason.

In better injury news, Ronald Acuna Jr. could be activated from the 10-day IL as early as tomorrow.  Acuna hasn’t played since suffering a calf strain on July 29, but the star outfielder seems to be on the verge of a relatively quick return.  Though Acuna has been limited to 55 games due to his calf injury and his recovery from the torn ACL that prematurely ended his 2024 season, the former NL MVP has still looked to be in superstar form, hitting .306/.429/.577 with 14 home runs in 238 plate appearances.

Braves Release Jackson Stephens To Sign With CPBL Team, Sign Anderson Pilar To Minor League Deal

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1:00pm: MLBTR has learned that Stephens was released to sign with a team in Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League.

12:49pm: Right-hander Jackson Stephens has been released by the Triple-A Gwinnett Stripers, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. On the flip side, the Braves have signed right-hander Anderson Pilar to a minor league deal and he’s been assigned to Gwinnett.

Stephens, 31, signed a minor league deal with Atlanta in the offseason. He’s actually been putting up good numbers in the minors in a swing role. He has logged 49 Triple-A frames this year over four starts and 18 relief appearances. He has a 2.57 earned run average, 22.2% strikeout rate, 7.9% walk rate and 41.5% ground ball rate.

Atlanta has needed plenty of arms at the big league level this year, which each of Chris Sale, Reynaldo López, Grant Holmes, Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver and Joe Jiménez missing significant time. Despite the need for innings, they haven’t given Stephens the call. With his decent numbers, it’s possible he opted out his minor league pact.

Whether he triggered some kind of opt-out or this is a straight release, the result is the same. He’ll head out to the open market and assess his opportunities. He has 132 1/3 innings of major league experience with a 4.15 ERA, 19.4% strikeout rate, 9% walk rate and 40.4% ground ball rate.

As for Pilar, it’s not a surprise that Atlanta has scooped him up. They took him from the Marlins in the Rule 5 draft back in December. He came into camp with the club but couldn’t make the most of the opportunity. He tossed 5 2/3 spring innings, allowing nine earned runs on ten hits and six walks while striking out ten.

Atlanta returned him to the Marlins prior to Opening Day. He’s having a decent but not spectacular season. He tossed 44 1/3 Triple-A innings with a 4.26 ERA, 25.9% strikeout rate and 6.7% walk rate. His .311 batting average on balls in play and 62.3% strand rate are a bit to the unfortunate side. His 3.11 FIP is more than a full run better than his ERA. The Marlins released him earlier this week and Atlanta has quickly pounced on him. This time, they aren’t bound by the Rule 5 restrictions and don’t even need to give Pilar a roster spot.

Photo courtesy of Dale Zanine, Imagn Images

Braves Designate Carlos Carrasco For Assignment

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The Braves announced Thursday that they’ve designated right-hander Carlos Carrasco for assignment. Right-handed reliever Hunter Stratton has been recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett to take Carrasco’s spot on the roster.

Atlanta picked up Carrasco in a cash swap with the Yankees prior to the trade deadline. The Braves were simply in need of arms to log innings with so many members of their rotation on the injured list, and Carrasco had been pitching well with New York’s Triple-A club in Scranton. Carrasco’s tenure with the Braves kicked off decently, as he tossed a quality start in a no-decision against the Reds on deadline day.

The next two outings for Carrasco, however, were brutal. The 38-year-old righty was tagged for six runs in 5 2/3 innings versus the Marlins on Aug. 7 and was torched for another six runs in only two innings against his former Mets club just yesterday. Overall, he’s pitched 13 2/3 innings with Atlanta and recorded a 9.88 ERA: 15 runs on 22 hits (three homers) and seven walks with only nine strikeouts.

Carrasco made 29 solid starts for the 2022 Mets (3.97 ERA, 152 innings) but has now struggled greatly in three consecutive major league seasons. He’s pitched 239 1/3 MLB frames dating back to 2023 but logged only a 6.36 earned run average as his velocity, strikeout rate, walk rate and home run rate have all trended in the wrong direction. The Braves are likely to place Carrasco on release waivers within the next couple days, and he’d become a free agent upon clearing.

With Carrasco dropped from the staff, Atlanta will give starts to Spencer Strider, Erick Fedde, Bryce Elder, Joey Wentz and Hurston Waldrep. Reigning NL Cy Young winner Chris Sale is on the mend from the ribcage fracture that’s sidelined him for nearly two months and pitched two innings Tuesday in the first of what’ll be multiple minor league rehab starts.

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