Manager Brian Snitker said Murphy (oblique) will likely begin a rehab assignment Tuesday, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Murphy has been on the injured list since Opening Day, but he has now been cleared to test his strained left oblique in a competitive environment. Considering the 29-year-old backstop has missed nearly two months, he will likely require an extended stay in the minors, but he should reclaim his role as Atlanta's everyday catcher once he returns.
Braves' Travis d'Arnaud: Diagnosed with bruised head
Rotowire
D'Arnaud was diagnosed with a head contusion after leaving Friday's game against the Padres in the sixth inning, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.
D'Arnaud reported dizziness after taking a foul ball off his facemask during the fifth inning. Manager Brian Snitker said that d'Arnaud passed all the initial tests for a potential concussion, but the team will evaluate him again Saturday before making a decision on his status going forward.
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Braves' Max Fried: Tagged for nine hits in loss
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Fried (3-2) took the loss Friday against the Padres, yielding three runs on nine hits and three walks over 4.1 innings. He struck out two.
Fried turned in his worst outing Friday since allowing seven runs on 10 hits against Arizona on April 6. The Atlanta lefty generated a measly four whiffs over his 88 pitches as the Padres lineup had his number all night. Fried looks to bounce back in his next start, slated to be against the Cubs in Chicago.
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Braves' David Fletcher: To be investigated by MLB
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Major League Baseball intends to open an investigation into a reported gambling situation involving Fletcher and bookmaker Mathew Bowyer, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Per Tisha Thompson of ESPN, Fletcher placed bets on multiple sports but did not bet on baseball. MLB allows players to bet on other sports, but doing so through illegal bookmakers such as Bowyer -- the same bookmaker used by Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara -- is prohibited and punishable at the discretion of the commissioner. Fletcher is currently not facing discipline but is expected to be investigated by Major League Baseball soon.
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Braves' Travis d'Arnaud: Exits with dizziness
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D'Arnaud was removed from Friday's game against San Diego due to dizziness.
D'Arnaud took a foul ball off his facemask in the fifth inning and did not take the field for the sixth. Atlanta will likely evaluate him for a possible concussion, and an update on his status should come after Friday's contest.
Johnson (elbow) is expected to be reinstated from the 15-day IL on Saturday, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.
After throwing a live bullpen session Wednesday, Johnson was expected to be activated prior to Friday's series opener against the Padres. However, he'll get one more day for recovery before rejoining the active roster Saturday. Friday's contest is the first of 17 straight, so Johnson's likely to see plenty of opportunities once available.
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Braves' Austin Riley: Out again Friday
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Riley (side) is out of the lineup for Friday's game against San Diego, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Riley won't be starting for a fourth consecutive game as he deals with inflammation in his left side. Instead, Zack Short will draw another start at the hot corner and bat ninth. Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said that Riley is feeling better but isn't quite ready yet, per David O'Brien of The Athletic. He remains day-to-day.
Johnson (elbow) said he felt good after throwing live batting practice Wednesday, and he's on track to come off the injured list ahead of Friday's game against the Padres, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
The right-hander has been on the shelf since late April due to right elbow inflammation. Johnson has been an effective part of Atlanta's setup crew this season, recording two wins, a save and three holds in 13 appearances with a 3.00 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 16:5 K:BB through 12 innings.
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Braves' Sean Murphy: Closing in on rehab stint
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Murphy (oblique) will begin a rehab assignment next week, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.
The catcher has been out since Opening Day after suffering an oblique strain, and Atlanta has taken things slowly with him so far. Murphy now appears to be in the final stages of his recovery, but given the amount of time he's missed, his rehab assignment could last more than just a few days. Travis d'Arnaud will continue handling catching duties until Murphy returns, backed up by Chadwick Tromp.
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Braves' Hurston Waldrep: Clicking at Double-A
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Waldrep allowed one run on six hits over eight innings for Double-A Mississippi on Wednesday, striking out eight without walking a batter.
The 22-year-old right-hander had a bumpy beginning to his season, coughing up 10 runs in seven innings over his first two starts, but since then Waldrep has been on fire. Over his last five outings, the 2023 first-round pick has produced a 1.16 ERA and 26:9 K:BB through 31 innings while giving up zero homers. Atlanta would like to see more strikeouts out of Waldrep, but he's put himself back on track to potentially compete for a big-league rotation spot in 2025, and an MLB debut later this summer isn't out of the question.
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Braves' Spencer Schwellenbach: Sharp in Double-A debut
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Schwellenbach threw six scoreless innings for Double-A Mississippi on Wednesday, allowing three hits and a walk while striking out nine.
It was an impressive Double-A debut for the 23-year-old right-hander, who earned his promotion by posting a 2.25 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 34:9 K:BB over 32 innings for High-A Rome. Schwellenbach was a second-round pick in 2021 but didn't make his pro debut until last year due to Tommy John surgery, and he's still learning the nuances of pitching after being a two-way player in college. Atlanta will keep a close eye on his workload this year as he threw only 65 innings in 2023, but it wouldn't be a huge surprise if he climbs to Triple-A by the end of the campaign.
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Braves' Owen Murphy: Dominating at High-A
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Murphy struck out 11 over 6.1 scoreless innings for High-A Rome on Tuesday, allowing three hits and zero walks.
The 20-year-old right-hander is having a breakout campaign and justifying the upside Atlanta saw in him when the team made Murphy the 20th overall pick in the 2022 draft. In his last five starts, he's struck out double-digit batters three times, posting a 1.86 ERA, 0.69 WHIP and 44:8 K:BB in only 29 innings over that stretch. Atlanta hasn't had qualms about advancing pitchers up the ladder quickly in the past, so Murphy figures to get promoted to Double-A before long given his dominance of South Atlantic League hitters. On his current trajectory, a 2025 big-league debut could be in the cards.
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Braves' Charlie Morton: Struggles in short start
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Morton (3-1) took the loss Wednesday versus the Cubs, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits and three walks while striking out four over three innings.
Morton worked a high pitch count, needing 76 pitches (48 strikes) to get through three frames in his shortest outing of the season. He had pitched into the sixth inning in each of his other seven starts. The 40-year-old's poor start caused his ERA to balloon to 3.52 from 3.14, and he's sporting a 1.15 WHIP and 44:17 K:BB over 46 innings. Assuming there's not an injury at play, Morton is tentatively projected for a road rematch with the Cubs in his next start.
Lopez (back) is slated to start Sunday's game against the Padres in Atlanta, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
The right-hander dealt with back tightness in his most recent start Monday against the Cubs and was lifted after five scoreless innings, but he's apparently feeling better two days later. Assuming he's able to make it out of his between-starts bullpen session without incident, Lopez shouldn't face any major workload restrictions when he toes the rubber Sunday. After spending most of the last two seasons as a reliever, Lopez has exceeded expectations with his move to a starting role in his first year in Atlanta, going 2-1 with a 1.34 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 40:16 K:BB in 40.1 innings through his first seven outings.
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Braves' Austin Riley: Sitting in third straight game
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Riley (side) is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
He'll miss out on a third straight start while he manages left side inflammation, but with the benefit of some added rest in the form of a team off day Thursday, Riley could be healthy enough to rejoin the starting nine for Friday's series opener versus the Padres. Zack Short will make another start at third base in Riley's place Wednesday.
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Braves' Ronald Acuna: Gets first day off of season
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Acuna is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Acuna is on the bench for the series finale, but his absence doesn't appear to be anything more than a much-needed maintenance day after he had started in right field in each of Atlanta's first 39 games of the season. Adam Duvall will step in as the starting right fielder in place of Acuna, who is in the midst of a cool stretch at the plate with just four hits in 31 at-bats over his last eight starts.
