Injuries are a part of baseball and that is particularly true when it comes to the modern game. As long as quick-twitch athleticism, pitch velocity, and pitch spin are effective, players are going to get hurt at a higher rate than we are used to seeing. However, the Atlanta Braves seem to be dealing with even more than their fair share of injuries with Grant Holmes just the latest victim.
The Braves' pitching staff was already ravaged by injuries. Most of the Braves' Opening Day rotation was on the shelf and only Chris Sale's rib injury could really be considered a fluke injury. Reynaldo Lopez's shoulder had issues after being converted to starting again and both AJ Smith-Shawver and Spencer Schwellenbach are dealing with elbow injuries of different flavors.
Now, Holmes is heading for more tests after experiencing elbow soreness on Saturday against the Rangers and everyone who follows the Braves need to start demanding answers and change when it comes to Atlanta's injury epidemic.
Braves' second straight injury-ravaged season needs to bring about some changes
In fairness to the Braves, they are not the only franchise that is dealing with the a load of injuries. The Dodgers somewhat famously cannot keep pitchers healthy and the Astros' injured list is loaded on both sides of the ball. What plagues Atlanta isn't exactly unique in MLB, but that doesn't mean that their shouldn't be some wholesale changes.
This is now the second straight season where injuries have made the Braves basically unwatchable. The Braves' entire 2025 Opening Day rotation is now on the injured list and the injuries don't stop there. Joe Jimenez, Austin Riley, and Marcell Ozuna all have added their names to the running list of ailments and that doesn't even account for the injury-riddled disaster that was the 2024 season.
Enough is enough. At some point, there has to be accountability at the organizational level for what is going on with the team. Whether that is wholesale changes to their training staff, significant alterations to their strength and conditioning program, and/or an overhaul to the specific pitch characteristics and swing mechanics they are preaching, what Atlanta is doing right now is just not sustainable.
It is bad enough that the Braves' farm system has become barren and the team has now lost two seasons in a row. Without fundamental changes to try and at least limit this injury epidemic, history seems destined to repeat itself over and over.