Braves Ozzie Albies out for at least two months with fracture
Ozzie Albies has been placed on the 60-day injured list by the Braves after fracturing his left foot against the Nationals.
The defending World Series champion Atlanta Braves will be without Ozzie Albies for at least two months.
The Braves placed the All-Star second baseman on the 60-day injured list a day after he fractured his left foot in Monday’s 9-5 win over the Washington Nationals.
Albies sustained the injury on an awkward swing while batting in the fifth inning. He took a step out of the batter’s box on a groundout to the shortstop before falling to the ground in pain.
“Hate it for Ozzie. Hate it for us,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “He’ll be fine. He’s young, he’ll heal quick.
“Like I said, I just hate it for the kid, because he loves to play baseball and he’s such a big part of our club. It’s a chance for somebody else to do something good.”
Orlando Arcia took over for Albies and is expected be Atlanta’s primary second baseman for the foreseeable future.
Impossible to replace
It will be virtually impossible, however, to replace Albies’ bat.
The 25-year-old hit a career-high 30 home runs last season and his 98 career homers are the most by a Braves second baseman in franchise history. He is batting .244 with eight home runs, 33 RBIs and 34 runs scored in 62 games this season.
Albies’ injury marred yet another victory for the Braves, who have won 13 in a row to pull within five games of the NL East-leading New York Mets. This is Atlanta’s longest winning streak since a 14-game run from July 26 to August 9, 2013.
With Albies sidelined, this marks the second year in a row the Braves will have to overcome an injury to one of their young stars.
Ronald Acuna Jr. had just been named to his second All-Star Game before suffering a torn right ACL while trying to make a leaping catch in the outfield at Marlins Park on July 10 last year.
The knee injury sidelined him for the final three months of the regular season and forced him to miss Atlanta’s run to the franchise’s first World Series championship since 1995.