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Austin Riley could need IL stint

Originally posted on SportsTalkATL | By Chase Irle | Last updated 5/20/24

The Braves offensive rut continued over the weekend, as they mustered just two runs in two games against the Padres, losing both. Nobody’s been able to get it going offensively, outside of Marcell Ozuna, and it doesn’t help that two All-Stars are missing from the lineup.

Sean Murphy has been out since Opening Day, but the good news is his rehab assignment is scheduled to begin tomorrow, which means we could see him back in Atlanta in about a week or so.

Sean Murphy will begin his rehab assignment on Tuesday with Triple-A Gwinnett.

— Justin Toscano (@JustinCToscano) May 19, 2024

Austin Riley has also been out of the Braves lineup since last Sunday when the left the game against the Mets after feeling some soreness in his side. To this point, he’s avoided the IL, but that might not be the case for much longer.

Prior to Saturday’s game, which was postponed, Austin Riley said he has not even begun swinging the bat. He did take part in some fielding drills yesterday, but it doesn’t seem like he’s quite ready to rejoin the lineup.

Austin Riley wouldn’t commit to being ready for the upcoming Cubs series and he hasn’t even started to swing a bat yet. This would suggest an IL stint is still a possibility. But there’s not currently an obvious INF candidate to bring up to fill that role

— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) May 18, 2024

Riley is feeling better today. He took ground balls on the field. If he feels good again tomorrow, he may be cleared to start swinging a bat again. They’ll ease him into the swinging process.

— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) May 19, 2024

As we’ve seen with Sean Murphy, these side injuries can be tricky and linger for much longer than anticipated. Austin Riley did receive good news initially when his MRI came back negative, but the Braves are rightfully taking things extremely cautiously this early in the season. Hopefully, he’ll feel good enough to return this week; the Braves desperately could use his presence back in the middle of the lineup.

This article first appeared on SportsTalkATL and was syndicated with permission.

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