Braves Activate Ha-Seong Kim, Place Outfielder on Concussion IL

The long wait to see Ha-Seong Kim back in the Atlanta Braves lineup is over. He was officially activated from the injured list by the team on Monday morning. Meanwhile, Eli White was placed on the concussion 7-day injured list.

Kim makes his return after a strong stint in the minor leagues during his rehab assignment, which was split between Double-A Columbus and Triple-A Gwinnett. He will make his season debut when the Braves start their series at home against the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday night.

White will miss more time after he slammed into the outfield wall at Dodger Stadium in an effort to preserve a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the sixth on Sunday. He robbed Max Muncy of a multi-RBI hit, but it came at a cost to himself.

Manager Walt Weiss expressed some concern for White after the game. The follow-up is concussion protocol. He missed some time already this season with a leg injury, though he didn't go on the injured list for that ailment. We'll see when he ultimately gets back after a week away.

Eli White made an unreal catch on Sunday, but now he will miss some time | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

For now, an outfield bat leaves the lineup while a bat at shortstop comes in. Kim finished his recovery from a right middle finger injury that required surgery, which he sustained over the offseason. He was originally expected to be back next month, but his recovery progressed better than initially expected.

Through nine games of his rehab assignment, Kim batted .286 with a .733 OPS, an RBI and a stolen base. This time during his rehab assignment also served as a spring training for him since he missed time.

Back in December, the Braves re-signed Ha-Seong Kim to a one-year, $20 million contract. He had turned down his $16 million player option for the upcoming season. So, the move netted him a modest pay bump for the season.

In 24 games, he batted .253 with a .684 OPS, three home runs and 12 RBIs. Both of the counting totals were more than what he had with Tampa Bay. Before he went hitless over the final series of the season, Kim was batting .289 with a .770 OPS. His performance was stronger than the overall numbers suggest.

First pitch for Tuesday night's game is set for 7:15 p.m. Grant Holmes is expected to be on the mound against the Braves, and he will go up against Colin Rea. It will be his first start since May 1. He was scratched from his May 6 start in favor of Martín Pérez.

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