Braves Rumors: Great sign for Michael Harris II, no more bullpen games, Rockies trade target

Braves Rumors: Michael Harris II has ditched the knee brace, breakout incoming

After his breakout season for the Braves a year ago, Michael Harris II has gotten off to a nightmarish start to his encore effort after capturing NL Rookie of the Year.

Not only did Harris miss three weeks with a lower-back strain suffered in early April, but he also has been struggling mightily at the plate, slashing just .177/.261/.266 on the season and in the midst of a four-game hitless streak after the Saturday evening loss to Seattle. To make matters worse, he’s also been battling a minor knee injury that he suffered on May 3, called a “jam” of the knee by the team.

To put it plainly, it’s not been a whole lot of good for the Braves centerfielder. With that said, Harris gave us a great sign that the turnaround and return to stardom could be coming soon.

Though he’s gone hitless in the first two games against the Mariners in this current series, Harris told reporters that Friday’s game against Seattle was the first time since he jammed his knee that he’d not worn his knee brace. More importantly, he noted that he “felt normal” at the plate for the first time since he returned to the lineup wearing the brace on May 6.

Again, it’s not been pretty for Harris at the plate. Now that he feels normal and healthy, though, we’ve still seen him actually produce a hard-hit rate 1.5% higher than last season and a lowered strikeout rate so far as well. These signs indicate that, with some adjustments and simply feeling like himself at the plate, the breakout of this slump for Michael Harris II could be incoming any day now.