Freddie Freeman Has a Broken Wrist

Well, this sucks. In the midst of a season that looked like it was going to take the Braves first baseman from one of the better hitters in baseball to one of the elite players in the game, Freddie Freeman has hit a roadblock. Or rather, been hit by one. An Aaron Loup fastball in the fifth inning of last night’s game got Freeman in the arm, and today, it’s been reported that an MRI revealed a broken wrist, which will sideline the star first baseman for at least the next couple of months.

This is obviously a huge blow to the Braves, as Freeman was carrying the team on his back. Even with Freeman running a 204 wRC+ to this point, the Braves still had just a 94 wRC+, and without a real backup first baseman on the team, it’s not entirely clear who will replace him in the line-up. The Braves official site lists Jace Peterson as the team’s backup 1B, but he’s now playing third while Adonis Garcia is on the DL. Nick Markakis has played some first base before, but the team isn’t exactly overflowing with outfielders as it is, so then you’re looking at someone like Danny Santana replacing the team’s best hitter for two months.

While the Braves probably weren’t going to be contenders this year, this is a huge blow to their chances to even hang around for the rest of the summer. For a team looking to infuse some optimism into the fanbase with the opening of a new stadium, this is pretty close to the worst news they could receive.

Hopefully, for the Braves and the game’s sake, Freeman comes back to full health for the last few months of the year. Freeman’s at-bats were becoming appointment viewing, and the summer just got a little less interesting for baseball as a whole, and a lot less interesting for fans in Atlanta.





Dave is the Managing Editor of FanGraphs.

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Kevinmember
6 years ago

I would think that the Braves give up on 2017, trade any expiring deals they have, and try to get another early draft pick for next season.

Might as well punt now and give their young guys a chance to play.

cnote66member
6 years ago
Reply to  Dave Cameron

could you deal Kemp? At least he is hitting.

sadtrombonemember
6 years ago
Reply to  cnote66

If you eat enough of the contract, then probably.

JEdwardmember
6 years ago
Reply to  sadtrombone

**Insert joke about Bartolo Colon volunteering to eat the contract**