On Sunday morning, the Braves released a tweet with roster moves. They announced …
They recalled catcher Chadwick Tromp.
They designated Charlie Culberson for assignment.
They did not mention Sean Murphy, whose right hamstring inflammation necessitated these moves. And the fact they did not mention Murphy is good news, because it means he has, at least for now, avoided the injured list.
In Saturday’s win over the Rockies, Murphy exited the game with right hamstring tightness. He appeared to tweak his hamstring rounding first base on what would’ve been a double.
Murphy’s MRI showed some inflammation. For now, the Braves will wait and see how he progresses over the next few days. They have until Wednesday to decide if he’ll hit the injured list, as teams can backdate injured-list placements a maximum of three days.
“It was mild to begin with. (The MRI) just kind of confirmed that it was mild,” Murphy told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution after Sunday’s win over Colorado. “It’s good. Not great, but good, considering (the situation).”
Does he feel like he can avoid the injured list?
“I’ll have a better answer for you in 48 hours,” Murphy said.
For now, he said, he is “day to day, figuring it out as I go.” He feels better than he did Saturday.
Asked if the Braves feel Murphy can avoid an injured-list stint, Braves manager Brian Snitker said this after Sunday’s win : “It’s day-to-day, health-wise. We’ll be treating him up all day (Sunday). I’m sure he’ll spend his off day being treated, and we’ll see.”
This is Tromp’s second stint with Atlanta this season. He was up after Travis d’Arnaud suffered a concussion in early April. For Triple-A Gwinnett this season, Tromp has hit .194 with a .719 OPS. He has five homers and 20 RBIs.
Murphy is having the best offensive season of his career. He’s batting .287 with a .919 OPS. He’s hit 12 homers and has driven in 42 runs.
On Saturday, Murphy scorched a sure double. But he pulled up and stayed at first base, clearly in pain.
“I wanted it to stay mild,” he said. “I didn’t feel like pushing it. I didn’t think it was worth it.”
The Braves are fortunate. They have two starting catchers on the same roster.
Travis d’Arnaud has a .776 OPS this season. On Friday, he homered twice. He was an All-Star last season.
The Braves have an off day on Monday. If Murphy doesn’t need to go on the injured list, that off day will minimize the time Atlanta has to go without its best catcher.
On May 19, the Braves called up Culberson. He didn’t get into a game.
The Braves’ decision to designate Culberson for assignment leaves them without a backup infielder. The club is crossing its fingers and hoping it does not happen, but ...
If the Braves need a shortstop, it would probably be third baseman Austin Riley. If they need a second baseman, it would probably be outfielder Eddie Rosario, who played a lot of second base in the minors. If they need a third baseman, it would probably be Tromp. If they need a first baseman, it would be Tromp or d’Arnaud.
“Let’s just hope we don’t get there,” Riley said with a smile.
Kolby Allard begins rehab assignment
Kolby Allard, who suffered a Grade 2 oblique strain during spring training, began his rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett on Sunday.
He allowed only one hit over four innings. He struck out three batters and walked one. He threw 45 pitches, and 31 were strikes.
Allard is part of Atlanta’s starting pitching depth. Had he been healthy, he might’ve gotten a spot start or two to this point, as the Braves have needed a lot of starters over the first two-plus months.
On opening day, the Braves put Allard on the 60-day injured list.
Braves starting pitchers for Philadelphia
The Braves on Tuesday will begin a big series against the Phillies in Philadelphia.
Their starters, in order, for the three games: Spencer Strider, AJ Smith-Shawver and Bryce Elder.
Strider and Smith-Shawver are staying on turn. Elder is moving up a day to start in place of Jared Shuster, who would’ve been scheduled to pitch on Thursday. But because of Monday’s off day, Elder will be on regular rest.
The Braves also skipped Shuster during the Mets series at Truist Park a couple weeks ago.
“It’s just maneuvering things, giving a guy an extra day and all that,” Snitker said. “It’s not a big deal.”
Braves trade minor-league pitcher to Oakland
The Braves on Sunday traded righty Yacksel Rios to Oakland for cash. In Triple A this season, Rios has a 2.49 ERA over 25 1/3 innings.
He hasn’t had much big-league success in his career. Over parts of five seasons, he’s posted a 5.77 ERA over 96 2/3 innings.
Rios had a clause in his contract that dictated he had to added to Atlanta’s major-league roster by Monday or the Braves had to send him to a team prepared to put the righty on its 26-man roster.
The Athletics expressed interest in Rios. Meanwhile, the Braves weren’t prepared to put Rios on their roster because that would’ve meant optioning right-hander Ben Heller, who has eight strikeouts over three innings across two appearances for the Braves thus far.
Thus, Rios will go right to the majors with Oakland.
But if no one had expressed interest in him, the Braves could’ve kept him in Gwinnett.
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