Braves Can Add Two To Major League Roster on Sunday, But Who?

The Atlanta Braves have seemingly struggled to field a healthy team at times this season, with the injuries impacting the major league roster so severely that the only game they had the entire Opening Day roster together was...well, Opening Day.

(Even that wasn't a complete game, as Sean Murphy left in the 7th injury with his oblique injury).

But when rosters officially expand on September 1st, there's multiple options that Atlanta can select to add to the major league group and it's hard to know which direction they'll go in. With the possibilities of adding one pitcher and one position player, there is a few different options for the team to choose from. Let's break down the options.

Pitching: Starter or reliever?

There's really only two different directions for the team to go - either they add another starter to give the existing rotation a chance to skip a day and take a break, or they go with another bullpen arm to help replace the missing AJ Minter (hip; out for season) in the back end.

The flamethrower youngster

We've talked a lot recently about the bullpen struggles once Atlanta gets past the high-leverage arms, so the Braves reinforcing the armbarn is a natural conclusion and the preference has to be for the flamethrowing Daysbel Hernández to get the first call.

Hernández, 27, has an average fastball velocity of 97.5 mph and would immediately be the hardest-throwing reliever in Atlanta's pen. In 11 MLB innings this season, he's allowed just one earned run, striking out 14.

The funky veteran

30-year-old Jimmy Herget has been one of the last relievers in the Braves pen a few times this season, being sent back and forth between Atlanta and Gwinnett.

His conventional stats aren't that spectacular - a 4.38 ERA across 12.1 MLB innings - but he's put up an expected ERA under 3.00 and has shown a proclivity for both missing bats (strikeout rate of 28.8%, whiff rate of 27.8%) and soft contact when guys do happen to make contact (avg exit velo of just 83.9).

He'd be a candidate to take multiple innings in a Jesse Chavez-type role if added to the pen.

A starter with postseason experience

Is this when Ian Anderson finally makes his MLB return?

One of the heroes of the 2021 World Series team, Anderson spent the end of 2022 in Triple-A before having Tommy John surgery early in 2023. Back on the mound since mid-June and officially removed from his rehab assignment in late July, Anderson has gone 2-2 with a 4.84 ERA in seven starts for Triple-A Gwinnett.

Do the Braves think he's ready for a Major League appearance? He strung together two quality starts in three outings early this month (2-0, 2.45 ERA across 18.1 innings), but stumbled on Wednesday with five earned runs on eight hits in just four innings to the Columbus Clippers (Cleveland Guardians).

If Atlanta wants to build in a rest day for their MLB rotation, a practice that they were aggressively doing earlier this season but have mostly abandoned in August once everyone came off the IL, Anderson might get the call.

Starter or reliever? Why not both?

Of course, the Braves might not need to decide between starting or relief if they call up phenom AJ Smith-Shawver . The 21-year-old was the only spot starter for Atlanta to have any success this season, going 4.1 scoreless against the Chicago Cubs in late May with three hits, two walks, and four strikeouts, but he also strained an oblique in that outing and didn't pitch again until sometime in July.

Also off of rehab, he's in a similar situation to Anderson: He had six scoreless innings with seven strikeouts against Lousiville two outings ago, but stumbled against Columbus this week - five runs on seven hits in 5.2 innings, walking four and striking out four.

If the Braves choose to use him for a spot start over Anderson, Smith-Shawver's four-pitch arsenal and his fastball velocity (avg of 96.2) would allow him to transition into the bullpen down the stretch.

Position player: What do you need ?

When looking at the available options for position players, the Braves need to decide if they either give themselves another option to mix into the starting lineup, some depth and versatility from a utility-type player, or someone to fill a specific role - pinch-running, pinch-hitting, etc.

A veteran to help at third base

Eight-year MLB veteran Yuli Gurriel has spent the season in Gwinnett, playing mostly first base, and raked: .292/.378/.485 with 12 homers in 75 games since signing. He switched back to his old position of third base when Austin Riley suffered a broken wrist, but went on the injured list himself shortly after with a mild hamstring injury.

Expected to get back into the Gwinnett lineup tomorrow, Spanish MLB reporter Francys Romero reports that he's being considered for a major league promotion to share time with Gio Urshela at third base.

Another big bat in the catcher mix

Drake Baldwin has been one of the most impressive position player prospects in Atlanta's organization this season, representing the team in this season's Futures Game and contending for MVP after homering in the game. His 90th percentile exit velocity of 107 is well above MLB average (103) and he could absolutely "run into one" if he gets at-bats down the stretch.

The Braves don't necessarily need help behind the plate - Sean Murphy and Travis d'Arnaud are both playing well in their mostly-even timeshare - but adding a third catcher would allow the Braves to use whichever starter wasn't in the game as their primary pinch-hitter and still have a catcher available in case of injury.

If the team wants to mostly stick with just playing two catchers and wants the third catcher to ride the bench as insurance, Chadwick Tromp would likely get the call over Baldwin.

A speedy outfield defender that can pinch-run

Outfielder Eli White is already on the 40-man roster, so that makes his promotion the easiest to do from a roster construction standpoint.

He's also got a few things going for him. The speedy 30-year-old has used his 91st percentile sprint speed as a pinch runner, 17-22 in career stolen base attempts. He's a defensive whiz, getting two starts in centerfield in the days before Michael Harris II returned from the injured list.

With the team making a point to replace Jorge Soler on defense late in matchups, having another excellent defender that can cover significant ground could be advantageous.

Another versatile infield defender

This one feels the least likely, but we still need to talk about it.

Ozzie Albies is due back in mid-September, meaning that Whit Merrifield will need to move to third base if the Braves want to keep his bat in the lineup. Until that happens, however, the Braves could choose to take some of the load off of Gio Urshela by giving occasional starts to top infield prospect Nacho Alvarez at the hot corner.

I saw it's unlikely because Alvarez looked entirely unprepared for his major league call-up back in late July. The infielder went 3-30, striking out ten times without drawing a walk. While he was fine defensively, translating his raw talent to offensive success is something to continue to work on for the shortstop.

When will this happen?

Atlanta's roster moves are expected on Sunday, in advance of their series finale with the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday night in Citizens Bank Park.