The Atlanta Braves have become one of the worst teams in baseball this season, a surprising falloff after making the MLB playoffs for the past seven years. Injuries have plagued their pitching staff, and the offense has struggled at times. Even manager Brian Snitker is likely on his way out after this season.
“Because of that consistent recent success, Snit would normally be afforded a ‘mulligan’ year—even though going from the second-best preseason World Series odds to possibly the third-best odds of winning the draft lottery is a pretty serious mulligan,” Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller wrote. “At 69, though, he's already the oldest manager in the National League by a several-year margin and was likely to retire at the end of this season, which is the last one in his current contract.”
With the season effectively over, it’s surprising that the Braves plan to bring Ronald Acuña Jr. back from a calf strain so soon — but they are.
“In better injury news, Ronald Acuña Jr. could be activated from the 10-day IL as early as tomorrow. Acuña 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,” MLB Trade Rumors reported.
Recently, Snitker confirmed that a trio of pitchers are likely done for the season, a prudent move given their health.
“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,” MLB Trade Rumors’ Mark Polishuk wrote.
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This pretty much sums up the Braves’ season, and it wouldn’t be surprising if Grant Holmes ends up on that list soon. Meanwhile, Atlanta has put Chris Sale on a rehab assignment, which again is a bit unexpected. The pitching staff has never been able to find a rhythm amid the slew of injuries.