ATLANTA (AP) — In sports, there’s a mantra that everyone falls back on when the inevitable injuries strike.
Only one problem for the Atlanta Braves.
“We’re having a hard time finding the next man up,” manager Brian Snitker moaned.
An unrelenting series of breaks, tears and strains have left the six-time reigning NL champions scrambling to cobble together a lineup, putting their hopes of making it back to the postseason in serious jeopardy.
“We’re just going through a really weird time right now,” All-Star pitcher Reynaldo López said through a translator. “It just feels like as soon as someone comes off the IL, someone goes on it. Then someone else comes off and someone else goes on. It’s just really strange, but there’s nothing we can do.”
Slugging third baseman Austin Riley was the latest to go down, his year in jeopardy after getting plunked with a 97 mph fastball. He’ll need six to eight weeks to recover from a fractured right hand, which knocks him out for at least the rest of the regular season.