ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – Major League Baseball’s Opening Day is Thursday, and although the Atlanta Braves are likely going to be one of the best teams in baseball, they’ll deal with numerous injuries to open the regular season.
The Braves on Tuesday placed right-hander Spencer Strider (right elbow UCL reconstruction), outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. (left knee reconstruction), catcher Sean Murphy (fractured left ribcage), infielder Nacho Alvarez Jr. (left wrist inflammation) and right-hander Joe Jimenez (left knee articular cartilage injury) on the 15-day injured list, with all moves retroactive to March 24.
All of these moves were expected, as Acuna and Strider had been recovering from their respective injuries throughout the spring and a few others suffering injuries during Grapefruit League play.
Acuna is finishing up his rehab from an ACL tear suffered in 2024 and is expected to return in the first half of May. He never took action in Grapefruit League play this spring but took reps in the back fields. He won the 2023 NL MVP Award after posting the first 40-70 season in major league history. In 2024, Acuna posted a .250/.351/.365 slash line with four home runs, 15 RBIs and 16 stolen bases before tearing his ACL rounding the bases on May 27.
On the other hand, Strider actually participated in spring ball, making two appearances and recording 10 strikeouts in four innings. He isn’t in the Opening Day rotation, and will likely take a spot from either AJ Smith-Shawver or Grant Holmes when he returns in mid-April. Strider went 20-5 with 281 strikeouts in 186.2 innings in 2023, finishing fourth in the NL Cy Young race that season. Strider made just two starts in 2024 before missing the rest of the season with his elbow injury.
Murphy went on the IL after suffering a cracked rib during Grapefruit League play. He should be back sometime throughout the first half of April. For now, top prospect Drake Baldwin will be behind the dish.
Jimenez underwent knee surgery early on in the offseason and likely won’t return at all this season. The right-hander posted a 2.62 ERA in 68.2 innings in 2024.
Alvarez went down with a wrist injury early on in Grapefruit League play, exiting a game in late February with wrist discomfort. Fast forward a month and he still has wrist discomfort. Alvarez likely won’t crack the major league roster when will start the season in the minors when he returns.
The Braves will take on the San Diego Padres in their season opener on Thursday at Petco Park. First pitch is at 4:10 p.m. EST.
Padres injury report
As for San Diego, the Padres have a few notable players of their own that will miss the start of the season.
Yu Darvish is the player that stands out most among the bunch, as San Diego’s $108 million man will miss the start of the 2024 campaign with elbow inflammation.
Darvish was shut down after his start on March 13 and has played catch twice since that start. The Padres gave no timeline for his return, but manager Mike Shildt noted, “We feel pretty comfortable that some rest and getting ramped back up will be the answer.”
The right-hander has averaged 20 starts for San Diego after signing a six-year extension prior to the 2023 campaign. He turns 39 this summer.
The rest of the Padres’ injury report includes:
- RHP Jhony Brito (right elbow soreness) – expected return is TBD
- RHP Matt Waldron (left oblique strain) – expected return is late April or early May
- RHP Sean Reynolds (stress reaction in right foot) – expected to return in May
- RHP Bryan Hoeing (right shoulder soreness) – expected to return in April or May
- RHP Joe Musgrove (Tommy John surgery) – out until 2026
How to watch the Braves on Gray
In Atlanta, fans can watch the Braves on Gray by tuning into PeachtreeTV, Atlanta’s CW Network. Fans can also watch games on YouTube TV, over the air on channel 17.1 and on channel 17 on Dish Network and DirecTV and channel 7 on Xfinity and Spectrum.
If you are in another market outside of Atlanta, click here to see how you can catch the action.
