How Recent Successful Change to Braves Lineup Impacts Profar's Return

The Atlanta Braves left fielder is closing on his return from his suspension and the plan for him is still materializing

The plan for Profar is still coming together as his return approaches | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

Jurickson Profar is days away from being in the Atlanta Braves lineup. He'll be elligible to be penciled in starting Wedensday during the second game of the Braves home series with the Angels.

Manager Brian Snitker will have him in immediate and is already considering how he wants to go about using Profar. Naturally, he will go to left field, is usual position and the one that the Braves have had in flux all season. What's left is to decide where he'll fit in the lineup.

Snitker initially envisioned Profar batting second behind Ronald Acuña Jr. in the lineup, but Matt Olson's recent success in that spot has changed the plan a bit. He has confidence in that set p, so it's just seeing where else Profar can fit.

"I think we can move him around, kind of, in the middle of the order," Snitker said. "I've thought about it...The fact that he's a switch hitter and all that is gonna work out good. Because I do kinda like that Olson thing behind Ronald. I think that's real."

It'll start to unfold once Profar is actually back with the team and getting at-bats in the lineup.

"He's gonna have to out here and put your eyes on him," Snitker said. "Let him play a little bit. See where he's at, and then, you know, who knows? And then start moving him around."

Profar has had an encouraging performance in Triple-A so far. He's batting .326 with a .991 OPS, three home runs and nine RBIs in 12 games with Triple-A Gwinnett. The numbers are nice, but the playing time overall and getting in shape are what matter most to Snitker.

"I'm just glad he's getting his at-bats," he said. "I don't pay much attention to the results and all that. He's getting the reps. His body, obviously, is good. He's playing nine innings every day. We'll see when he gets here."

It sounds off at first hearing that he doesn't care about the results, but in the end, it's a rehab assignment. It's about getting in shape to play in the Majors again. The numbers also don't necessarily reflect what they might get out of Profar. There's no reason to put too much stock into it.

If you ask if he's happier seeing Profar bat .326 instead of .126, he'll likely tell you that he is. It's just understanding that Triple-A stats aren't everything in this specific case.

Profar is nearing the end of an 80-game suspension for testing positive for the use of performance enhancing drugs (commonly referred to by the acronym PEDs). He tested positive for Chorionic Gonadotrophin (hCG), a hormone that helps with the production of testosterone.

Profar batted leadoff for the Braves in the four games he played ahead of his suspension. This was while Acuña was still recovering from his injury, so that was going to change anyway.