Braves Brian Snitker Opens Up About Riley Injury

Going forward, Atlanta Braves third baseman Austin Riley will be watching the remainder of the season away from the diamond. 

This week, he underwent core-muscle surgery to repair a sports hernia. He tried to work through it and get well again to get back out there, but it wasn’t meant to be. 

Manager Brian Snitker said that with how things are turning out for the team, it was best for him to undergo the procedure. 

“I think the biggest thing was there was some hesitation because of the possibility that he could have hurt something else. It’s kind of hard to go out in that situation and have him dive for a ball, and then get up and throw,” he said. “It just didn’t feel like where we were this season that was going to be worth him risking further injury if you had tried to through it.” 

Riley is now out for the final months of back-to-back seasons after two all-star campaigns and three where he received MVP votes. 

Snitker noted that these injuries have been more on the freak-accident side as opposed to lingering issues. The third baseman still has a chance to get back to his usual self for the long term. 

“I mean, it’s real things,” Snitker said. “It’s not like a nagging thing. It’s a broken bone that took a long time to heal, and then this thing’s real, sports hernias. So, hopefully, he’s got it behind him now, and he can go on and play another 10 years without having the interruptions.”

Riley suffered an abdominal injury in July that saw him miss a couple of weeks. He returned for a little more than a week before aggravating his injury again. Both times he got hurt came when he was in the field. The time was on a slow roller out in St. Louis, and the other came on a diving play at the plate in Bristol. 

As he tried to work his way back, each update came with him still feeling the ailment. At some point, you have to wonder what else is wrong, so he saw a doctor and received a diagnosis. 

Last time, it was a broken hand due to a hit by pitch. This time, it’s a sports hernia. He is expected to be healthy and ready to go for Spring Training. 

In 102 games played this season, Riley batted .260 with a .737 OPS, 16 home runs and 54 RBIs. 

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