The Atlanta Braves have placed third baseman Austin Riley on the 10-day injured list with a strained right abdomen, the team announced Saturday morning. Riley suffered the injury in the fourth inning of Friday’s 6-5 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. His timetable for return is currently unknown. The team recalled infielder Nacho Alvarez Jr. from Triple-A Gwinnett, and also called up left-hander Joey Wentz while demoting right-hander Nathan Wiles.
Austin Riley to the Injured List
The #Braves today reported LHP Joey Wentz to Atlanta. The club also recalled INF Nacho Alvarez Jr. to Atlanta, placed INF Austin Riley on the 10-day injured list with a strained right abdomen, and optioned RHP Nathan Wiles to Triple-A Gwinnett following yesterday’s game.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) July 12, 2025
It’s another tough blow in a brutal year for the Braves. Riley is in the midst of a down year overall with a .274/.324/.441 slash line and a 113 OPS+. However, in July, he’s turned up the heat with a .317/.333/.585 slash line since July 1. The Mississippi native has been a model of durability throughout his career, playing in 92% of Atlanta’s games since the COVID year and all 93 so far in 2025. However, this injury is a clear setback as Riley looks to return to his career-best production from 2022-2023.
22-year-old infielder Nacho Alvarez Jr. will presumably get the bulk of the starts in Riley’s place. The Riverside (California) Community College alum has been mashing in 11 games at Gwinnett since returning from his own injury. His .361/.531/.528 line is impressive, but he offers little power or speed (one home run, zero steals). Alvarez has mostly played shortstop and second base in his minor league career. However, the Braves have had him at the hot corner exclusively this season.
More Braves Roster Moves
In a continuing roster shuffle, the Braves also recalled reliever Joey Wentz after claiming him off waivers yesterday. The former Braves farmhand has bounced around the league as a low-leverage reliever for some time now, and holds a 6.88 ERA between stints with the Pirates and Twins this year. He will likely be called upon to eat some innings in the bullpen game today. However, days in Atlanta are probably already numbered.
The Braves demoted Nathan Wiles in a corresponding move. Wiles, 27, didn’t appear in a game after being called up for bullpen depth on Wednesday.
