Riley goes back on the IL after apparently never fully recovering from the injury that put him on the IL to begin with.
It really does feel like as far as the 2025 Atlanta Braves are concerned, no good deed goes unpunished this season. Despite the fact that the Braves had themselves a happy moment by coming out victorious in the tumultuous MLB Speedway Classic, they’ll have to make do without Austin Riley for a bit once again. Last month, Austin Riley went on the IL with an abdominal strain and only a couple of weeks later, he’s going right back on the IL with the same injury.
The #Braves today recalled INF Nacho Alvarez Jr. to Atlanta and placed INF Austin Riley on the 10-day injured list with a strained lower abdominal muscle. Additionally, the club recalled INF Jonathan Ornelas to Atlanta after optioning OF Jarred Kelenic to Triple-A Gwinnett…
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 4, 2025
Currently, there’s no timetable for Riley’s return and I’d imagine that there’s not going to be much of a rush to get him back out there. Riley was never really super productive while he was out there since making his return on July 25 after a two-week absence. Riley hit .108/.154/.297 over 39 plate appearances and 9 games played during that span, with just two homers and a wRC+ of 18. You could honestly make the case that he probably wasn’t ready to return but now that he’s back on the IL, I’d guess that we’re not going to see him again until he’s fully ready to go.
Until then, Nacho Alvvarez Jr. is back with the big league squad and Jonathan Ornelas will be joining him as well. Jarred Kelenic is the corresponding move for Ornelas, as it appears that he was just around for a cup of coffee as his only contribution to the team this time around was as a pinch-runner. Meanwhile, Ornelas would be in line to make his Braves debut should he get tapped to make an appearance. Ornelas has played in four big league games this season and has yet to pick up a hit in any of those contests. He’s also sporting a wRC+ of 69 so far during his time in the minors, so I wouldn’t exactly be expecting any thump coming from his bat if he’s to make a plate appearance.
EIther way, this is a bummer for Austin Riley as it appears to be just another one of those moments of frustration for both himself and the team as a whole. We’ve still got two months left of this, y’all.