The Atlanta Braves received a devastating blow on Wednesday afternoon, as they were forced to place Spencer Schwellenbach on the injured list with a fractured elbow. While the fracture is small enough that it doesn't have to cost the young right-hander his entire season, is there really any point in rushing him back?
“I hate it for him,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “The way he was going and the consistency that he’s shown and what he was doing for this team, he’ll be fine. He just keeps getting better.”
Atlanta is back in third place in the NL East following a win on Wednesday, but they are 11 games behind the Philadelphia Phillies for first place, and nine games behind the New York Mets for second. It's been a long season for the Braves and there is plenty to go around, but as Alex Anthopoulos sits back in his comfy office chair, surely he sees the writing on the wall. This team is not going to make a postseason run barring a divine series of events.
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Braves need to take it easy with Spencer Schwellenbach
The lineup, despite plenty of big names in it, has not produced consistently. The rotation is a shell of itself, with Schwellenbach, Chris Sale and Reynaldo Lopez all out long term. Max Fried is not walking through that door, he's too busy dominating AL East competition in the Bronx. This all brings me to my biggest point. The Braves should sell at the trade deadline. This is especially true for any players on expiring contracts, like Marcell Ozuna.
They also should not rush back any injured players in hopes of making a late September push. If anything, that puts players like Sale and Schwellenbach in particular at further risk of re-aggravating said injuries. In an article on the Braves official website titled 'Schwellenbach has fractured elbow; Braves hopeful for September return', the pitcher himself made the best argument as to why Atlanta should not pursue a 2025 return.
Braves freak accident should keep them from a major mistake
“[Doctors] just used the term 'freak accident,'” Schwellenbach said. “Honestly, from the bump in velo I’ve had in the last month, maybe my elbow just wasn’t ready for it. Who knows? It could have been anything.”
A freak accident? Neither Schwellenbach nor the Braves doctors seem to have a good handle on this situation. The 24-year-old isn't expected to throw for at least four weeks, as he needs to rest his arm. As Mark Bowman wrote, the Braves have lost four members of their Opening Day rotation to injuries. Given the current state of this group, they are unlikely to enter the final weeks of the season in contention.
Forcing the youngest and most vulnerable of those starting pitchers back onto the mound for meaningless games would be coaching malpractice.