Freddie Freeman’s body is starting to tell a story the Dodgers probably hoped they wouldn’t have to read yet.
The latest issue is patellar tendonitis, and it adds another chapter to a run of nagging injuries that have piled up over the last couple of years. For a player whose name is still tied so tightly to the Braves, that kind of wear naturally opens the door to a conversation nobody thought would feel quite this real: could Atlanta and Freeman eventually find their way back to each other?
That idea still sits a long way off. Freeman is owed a bit over $23 million for 2027, and the Dodgers are not moving him unless his body completely falls apart.
So for now, this is more of a future watch than a looming decision. The earliest things could really get interesting is the 2027 offseason.
But the timing lines up with a bigger shift in Atlanta. The 2028 season is set up to be a major one for the Braves, with the final club option in Ronald Acuña Jr. and Chris Sale’s contracts.
Ozzie Albies may very well be gone altogether along with Mike Yastrzemski. That kind of turnover would make a Freeman return at least worth considering as the team tries to smooth out a transition.
The Braves also have a built-in complication: Matt Olson is not going anywhere and remains a tremendous first baseman. That makes Freeman’s health and flexibility even more important. He has already dealt with elbow, finger, wrist, and ankle issues in recent years, and if he were open to becoming a DH, Atlanta could fit both bats into the same lineup without creating a defensive mess.
The real question, though, is whether either side would see the move as the right call when the time comes. Freeman would not come cheap, even if he were willing to move his family across the country again, and the Braves may not want to commit to a designated hitter who might not be able to play the field at all.
So a reunion is no sure thing. Still, with Freeman’s injuries mounting and Atlanta facing a possible roster reset, it’s not hard to picture a path where the idea stops sounding far-fetched.
In Other News...
Braves Face One Tough October Roster Call After Latest Injuries
With the regular season down to 12 games, the Braves are already doing the kind of postseason math that can shape an October run. The latest injuries to Bryce Elder and Lane Thomas have forced another look at the projected roster, and the picture now includes catchers Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy, a six-man infield group led by Matt Olson and Ha-Seong Kim, plus the usual mix of bench flexibility that matters most when the games tighten up.
The pitching side is where the newest wrinkle shows up, with Ray Kerr stepping into the projection in Elders place. Atlanta is also weighing the kind of depth pieces that can matter in October for pinch-running and pinch-hitting, and that leaves the front office and coaching staff with one more difficult call to make as the bracket approaches and every roster spot becomes a little more valuable. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Ownership Just Got Pressured Into An Awkward Franchise Debate
A major shareholder in Atlanta Braves Holdings has pushed the club into a debate it probably would rather avoid, publicly urging the board to explore a sale of the franchise. Breach Inlet Capital Management framed the argument around a strong market for sports sales, the Braves unique assets and the idea that the teams stock is being priced below where recent MLB franchise sales have landed.
The timing is what makes the pressure feel so pointed. Breach Inlet also pointed to potential labor disputes in Major League Baseball and upcoming tax law changes as reasons to consider moving now, turning a valuation discussion into a broader question of whether the right window to sell could be opening. For a franchise with no shortage of appeal on the open market, that is the sort of challenge ownership cannot simply shrug off. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Stick With A Familiar Look As Ozzie's Slide Looms
The Braves are again leaning into a familiar look, and there is reason for that beyond comfort. Atlanta has already seen this lineup pay off once, and the Cubs have done the same with theirs in a game that turned into a 12-2 win, so there is at least some recent evidence that both clubs know what works when these pieces are in place. On the other side, David Peterson gets the start, and the matchup history adds a little more intrigue, with several Cubs hitters having seen him multiple times and produced mixed results.
What makes the setup especially interesting for Atlanta is Ozzie Albies, whose recent offensive slide has started to loom over the everyday construction of the order. The Braves are keeping the lineup intact for now, but the numbers have not hidden the drift in his production, and that leaves this as more than just a routine card-watch day. With Reynaldo Lopez also carrying a concerning expected weighted on-base mark against Cubs hitters in limited work, there is enough crosscurrent in the matchup to make the familiar feel a little less settled. [Read more 🡒]