Tag: Austin Riley

The Braves’ Michael Harris II had the most appropriate reaction to news of Austin Riley’s fractured hand

A nightmare season for Braves injuries.

Every team across baseball has to overcome injuries. That’s the reality of a 162-game season. But you’re not going to find a more nightmarish injury situation than what the Braves have been dealing with this season.

And somehow, it just got worse.

Braves third baseman Austin Riley was removed from Sunday’s game in the first inning after taking a 97 mph fastball off the right hand. The initial X-ray came back inconclusive, but on Monday, the team announced that an MRI revealed a fractured right hand for the Braves third baseman. The injury, which would sideline Riley for six to eight weeks, could not have happened at a worse time for the Braves.

Michael Harris II certainly felt that way.

The Braves center fielder — who recently returned from a two-month IL stint — took to Twitter/X with a spot-on reaction. Just when the Braves have looked to get healthy or have a big win, an ill-timed injury sets them back. Spencer Strider, Ronald Acuña Jr. and Ozzie Albies are all injured along with Riley. Newly acquired Jorge Soler is also dealing with a hamstring strain.

It’s been that kind of season for Atlanta, and Braves fans related to that tweet from Harris.

This was how Twitter/X reacted

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MLB’s Gameday 3D shows how Austin Riley was miraculously in position to double off Bryce Harper to end Game 2

He was somehow in perfect position to gather the throw.

The comparisons to Derek Jeter are being made when it comes to Austin Riley.

And maybe that’s not completely right given that the Hall of Fame shortstop was WAY out of position to make one of the greatest cutoffs in MLB postseason history for The Flip, but you can kind of see it when it came to finishing Game 2 of the Atlanta Braves’ NLDS win over the Philadelphia Phillies.

Michael Harris saved the game with his spectacular catch of a Nick Castellanos shot to centerfield, but then he threw the ball in to the infield to attempt to double off Bryce Harper, who had rounded second at that point. Riley was somehow in position closer to the middle of the field to grab the errant throw and toss it to first.

But why? MLB Gamecast 3D has the tale:

He was signaling to throw to first, excitedly. That go him to where he needed to be. Here’s another look, non-3D:

Just amazing all around. Credit to Riley here!

The 20 top selling MLB jerseys in 2023

Which player topped the list of MLB jersey sales in 2023?

When the calendar flips to October, it means one thing for many sports fans: playoff baseball.

Major League Baseball’s postseason is in full swing. It’s once again time for history to be written on the diamond and showcase the game’s biggest stars shining their brightest.

At the end of every regular season, the MLB releases the top-selling jerseys from that season.

Unsurprisingly, the list contains plenty of playoff contenders, a multitude of MVP candidates and simply some of the best baseball players on the planet

Check out the full list below, and grab a jersey to support your favorite player as the remaining lucky few march on towards the 2023 World Series.

MLB fans were in disbelief after umpire Edwin Moscoso gifted Austin Riley a walk despite 5 straight strikes

So many missed calls in ONE at-bat …

The Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies had themselves yet another rollercoaster game on Tuesday. Atlanta jumped to a 6-1 lead before the Phillies tied it in the ninth with the Braves ultimately winning in extra innings.

But it was also a night that saw home plate umpire Edwin Moscoso miss some big calls in crucial spots. The rookie umpire showed signs of trouble early in the game, particularly with Braves third baseman Austin Riley at the plate.

Facing Zach Wheeler in the first inning, Riley worked a walk in an eight-pitch at-bat despite the first five pitches being strikes. Out of the eight pitches, seven were either strikes or foul balls. Yet, Moscoso gifted Riley with a walk.

Even Riley seemed a bit surprised by some of those calls, and Wheeler was visibly frustrated with that strike zone. Again, only one taken pitch missed the zone in the entire at-bat.

In all, it wasn’t a great performance for Moscoso who also missed a would-be strikeout call in the 10th inning before Eddie Rosario’s go-ahead hit.

The Riley at-bat, though, had MLB fans stunned.

The Braves’ Austin Riley hit a Little League home run thanks to some incredible hustle around the bases

Now, THAT is why you run out of the box.

Atlanta Braves third baseman Austin Riley missed a couple games over the weekend with a stomach bug, but it’s safe to say that he’s thrilled to be back in the lineup.

He proved it with his effort on Monday.

Batting in the first inning of the Braves’ game 1 doubleheader against the Phillies, Riley drove a line drive to the left-center wall at Citizens Bank Park. It was the kind of contact that would have many players assuming it was a home run and leaving the batter’s box and half speed. Riley, though, took a different approach. He was sprinting the entire way.

Riley got an incredible jump out of the box and looked to be cruising in for a triple when left fielder Jake Cave bobbled the ball as he attempted to pick it up. That was all third base coach Ron Washington needed to see to give Riley the green light.

Now, Riley isn’t known for his speed. He’s a big dude and ranked in the 68th percentile in sprint speed, according to Statcast. But on that play he showed why it’s important to run out of the box. It was the difference between a stand-up double and a Little League home run (play was officially scored a triple and E7).

Fans also appreciated the hustle from Riley. That type of effort wins games.

Braves manager Brian Snitker chewed out an umpire after he got ejected

Braves manager Brian Snitker got absolutely HEATED on this umpire.

Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker absolutely let an umpire have it after Braves third baseman Austin Riley got hit by a pitch in the fourth inning of Atlanta’s Saturday evening tilt with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

After the hit, Snitker left the dugout to have a heated conversation with the ump and got ejected for the gesture. Even after that, Snitker stayed out on the baseball diamond to yell at the umpire for what went down with Riley.

Snitker isn’t necessarily known for his temper, but he absolutely chewed out the umpire for Riley being pegged by the pitcher.

You can bet this umpire won’t ever forget this blistering response from Snitker, even if the latter got ejected.

If you’re a Brave fan, you’re probably ready to run through a wall for Snitker right now.

This is the kind of backing that fans want from their managers for their players, and Snitker will likely be hailed as a hero in the Braves locker room for standing up for his guy.

Austin Riley’s high-IQ gamble at third base may have locked up the NL East for the Braves

Smartest play of the year?

When the New York Mets look back at their disappointing series in Atlanta this past weekend to try to find answers, it’ll be impossible to overlook one non-play from Austin Riley in Sunday’s game.

For all the uncharacteristic struggles from Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer, the Mets still had a strong chance to draw even in the NL East standings and go into the final three games of the season owning the tiebreaker. But really, one decision from the Braves third baseman might have been enough to swing that division race in Atlanta’s favor.

With the Mets up two runs in the third inning with runners on the corners and no outs, a soft grounder down the third-base line looked destined to score another run for the Mets. All they needed was for Riley to make a play on the ball where he would’ve had no chance at throwing out Mark Canha.

Riley — at the literal final moment — decided to let the ball go. It was a gamble that had to be incredibly difficult to make in real time, especially with a play that was so close. But Riley had to know that the Braves’ only hope of success in that situation was a foul ball, so he took the chance.

And it paid off.

The ball narrowly trickled foul. With new life, Charlie Morton was able to get Canha to pop out in the infield and retire the next two batters without allowing a run. The Braves ended up scoring three runs to take the lead in the bottom half of the inning and went on to complete the sweep of the Mets.

The Braves head into the final three games of the season with a two-game lead in the division, and Riley’s smart play understandably deserved plenty of credit.