Braves Lose Drake Baldwin to Injury, Make Flurry of Pitching Moves

The Atlanta Braves lose their star catcher to an injury all while having to navigate some changes to their pitching staff

The Braves see their roster undergo some major changes following the blowout loss to the Marlins | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Just like that, the Atlanta Braves are without one of the most reliable bats in their lineup. They announced Tuesday morning that they have placed Drake Baldwin on the 10-day injured list with a strained right oblique muscle.

Chadwick Tromp has had his contract selected. He is coming up from Triple-A to back Sandy León.

Baldwin had been on a quick track to blow his rookie season out of the water. He’s batting .303 with a .931 OPS, 13 home runs and 38 RBIs.

He was on pace to match the 19 home runs he hit in about 70 games, 54 fewer than in 2025. There was zero doubt that he was on track for his first trip to the All-Star Game. He still could be depending on his injury time line, which isn't known at this time.

We’ll see how long he’s actually out. Oblique injuries can be tricky. Spencer Strider was out for about a month and a half after he went down toward the end of spring training.

Pitching Staff Overhaul

Along with the changes on the catching side, the Braves have announced the following moves on the pitching side. JR Ritchie was optioned to Triple-A after last night's start, and Aaron Bummer has been released.

Dylan Dodd was reinstated from his rehab assignment and has been activated from the injury list, andVictor Mederos' reported call-up was made official.

Ritchie’s first stint came to an end after allowing six earned runs across four innings in the 12-0 loss to the Marlins. In five starts, he had a 4.91 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP.

Bummer came in and allowed another six runs across just one inning of work. It was the fifth time this season that he had allowed multiple runs in an outing, all of which saw him pitch a full inning or fewer. The Braves decided they had seen enough.

Dodd provides another option in the bullpen. He had allowed an earned run in four innings pitched before he went down with a back injury.

Mederos had been pitching in Triple-A since he had been acquired in a trade about a week into the season.

Add us as a preferred source on Google