Braves make flurry of roster moves ahead of Red Sox series

The Braves split their double-header on Thursday afternoon with the Philadelphia Phillies, avoiding disaster in the night cap behind a gem from Chris Sale and, finally, an offensive explosion. However, they did suffer a plethora of injuries; some serious, some not so serious. 

For starters, AJ Smith-Shawver reportedly heard a pop in his elbow following a series of unfortunate events that began with him being hit by a 97 MPH line drive on his calf. He would exit the game a batter later in the third inning, and after the game, Brian Snitker admitted the prognosis didn’t sound good. 

Smith-Shawver is back in Atlanta undergoing further tests, and if there was any hope of him potentially avoiding a season-ending injury, that was dashed when the Braves moved him from the 15-day IL to the 60-day IL today. Just a brutal blow for a 22-year-old arm that finally looked like he was turning the corner at the major-league level. Assuming he’ll undergo Tommy John surgery, Smith-Shawver will likely miss all of next season as well. In his place, Dylan Dodd has been added to the active roster.

In the same game, Stuart Fairchild exited after dislocating his pinky on a stolen base attempt. It doesn’t appear to be too serious, given he was available to pinch-run in the night cap, but he will go to the 10-day IL. In his place, José Azócar has been added to the major league roster.