There are still five games, including Sunday's ongoing contest against the Diamondbacks, left on this rather spooky West Coast road trip, but it is hard for Atlanta Braves fans to be upset with how the 2026 season has started. With all the injuries the Braves were still dealing with coming out of camp, simply surviving the 13 games straight without an off day would be an accomplishment. Now, Atlanta is somehow thriving, and help is on the way.
By all accounts, Sean Murphy should be returning to the Braves soon, although exactly how soon is a bit up in the air as he still needs to build up after missing spring training. We have heard about no setbacks so far for Ha-Seong Kim, so his May return seems to be on track. Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep do not appear to be close at all, but Spencer Strider almost certainly will return this month, barring a catastrophe.
That means there are going to be some guys currently on the roster who are going to be without jobs soon or, at minimum, will be moved to the bench. However, which players exactly should lose playing time is a tougher question to answer.
Here are the Braves players who deserve real playing time even after their injured players return
Obviously, no roster moves are made in a vacuum. As each of the Braves' injured players comes back, the cuts that need to be made become harder and harder, and playing time becomes more difficult to come by. Still, there are a handful of Braves players who have gone above and beyond during the first few weeks of the 2026 season who deserve to stick around and play if at all possible.
Mauricio Dubon
No one thought that Dubon was going to be much at the plate. The Braves traded for him to have a super utility weapon on the roster to give guys days off all over the field, but he was pressed into service as the everyday shortstop when Kim went down. To say that Dubon has answered the call is underselling it a bit, as he has a .357/.400/.500 line through eight games played thus far. That is not sustainable, and he is going to have to slide back to a utility role when Kim returns, but Dubon might take the field a little more than we thought for the Braves this season after this showing.
Bryce Elder
Mea culpa, Bryce Elder. Many have been calling for the Braves to move on from Elder for a while, but the Braves have remained steadfast in their desire to keep him around. That proved to be wise after the litany of rotation injuries that struck (again). Elder has played a huge role in preserving the Braves' bullpen and getting Atlanta off to this hot start. Once Strider returns, Elder deserves a shot to remain in the rotation, at least until Waldrep or Schwellenbach comes back.
Jonah Heim
Okay, okay...this is a very niche and weird choice. When Murphy returns, he is going to catch a decent bit with Drake Baldwin getting most of the time behind the plate. So why carry a third catcher who can't hit most of the time? Well, Heim has been the guy who called all three of the Braves' shutouts this year. With Baldwin and Murphy likely to be sharing DH duties as well, having a third catcher on the bench that can come in and mesh immediately with the pitching staff in case of emergency has a lot more value when their first two catching options are playing almost constantly.