The Braves lineup took a serious hit last night with the loss of Ozzie Albies to a fractured left foot, but having won 12 straight games with the offense firing on all cylinders, are the Braves built to overcome the loss of their starting second baseman?
While the club did call up Phil Gosselin today, Orlando Arcia will likely step in as the everyday 2B in Albies’ absence. As long as he doesn’t prove to be a defensive liability, Mike Bell believes that the 27-year-old utility player, batting .313 in 48 plate appearances in 2022, can stabilize the position for the foreseeable future. Carl Dukes agreed, saying that, while the team will cool off at some point (maybe), the lineup will be okay thanks to the emergence of Michael Harris and Adam Duvall along with the ongoing contributions of guys like Ronald Acuña and Dansby Swanson.
Joining Dukes & Bell on 92.9 The Game, our own Braves reporter Grant McAuley shared Bell’s viewpoint that Arcia can step in and keep things afloat.
“[He's] somebody that’s shown, in every opportunity he gets this year that he’s capable of hitting and he’s a guy that has played every day at the big league level for a while, so I think handing him that job, at least in the interim, is a good way to go," he said.
Beginning his career in Milwaukee as a highly touted prospect at the time, Arcia was an everyday player in 2017 when he turned in a .277 batting average but tailed off before he was traded to the Braves in April 2021.
McAuley did express that Arcia’s presence won’t necessarily deter Alex Anthopoulos from shopping around to see who may be available. While Albies isn’t producing at a silver slugger level this season at .244, one thing that McAuley alluded to that Arcia or anyone else the Braves bring in will not be able to replace is the energy he brings to the lineup.
The Braves have yet to release an official timeline for the injury, but he has been placed on the 60-day IL. As the Braves aim to displace the Mets atop the NL East, they'll have to do so without their second baseman after chopping the deficit down the five games throughout the winning streak.
