The Atlanta Braves are once again in the middle of a tough stretch of the season. After losing to the Twins on Tuesday, the Braves have now lost back-to-back series, and the Phillies have closed the gap in the NL East to 5.5 games. There is no reason to panic yet, but this is obviously not an ideal development.
Once the Braves finish up on Wednesday with Minnesota, they then have to go to the White Sox for a single makeup game before brutal back-to-back series against both the Brewers and Dodgers. This stretch will absolutely define Atlanta's chances this season, so here is some of the latest Braves news you may have missed before things get particularly serious.
Braves signed catcher Chuckie Robinson to a minor league deal
After trading Joey Bart at this year’s deadline to the White Sox, the Braves were clearly betting on Sean Murphy's successful return to round out the playing time behind the plate alongside Drake Baldwin. However, it looks like Atlanta isn't willing to leave too much to chance right now, which is wise given that Murphy has already dealt with two significant injury stints this season.
On Tuesday, it was reported that the Braves had signed catcher Chuckie Robinson, who the Braves previously claimed off waivers at the end of last season as well, to serve as minor league catching depth for the stretch run.
Braves are going with a six-man rotation...for now
When word got out that AJ Smith-Shawver was returning to the majors, many fans wondered who would be the odd man out in Atlanta's rotation, with Grant Holmes being the most likely choice. There is still merit to moving Holmes to the bullpen, but that doesn't seem to be what the Braves have in mind for now.
Before Atlanta's game against the Twins on Tuesday, manager Walt Weiss revealed that the Braves would be employing a six-man rotation. Things could easily change based on how well guys perform as well as health, but it seems like Weiss is content to have six starters at his disposal for the time being.
Weiss reiterated he sees Grant Holmes as a starter. But he noted this setup is temporary.
— Gabe Burns (@GabeBurnsAJC) August 18, 2026
"Right now we have six starters, and like I’ve said, it’s not going to stay that way the rest of the season. We’ll have to make an adjustment. But it’ll be based on need and performance." https://t.co/BimHEjQaFT
Alex Lodise and Carter Beck both got late-season promotions in the minor leagues
Somewhat recently, the Braves made a wave of minor league promotions to make room for this year's draft class that led many top prospects, including Eric Hartman, Tate Southisene, Conor Essenburg, Owen Carey, and others, to get bumped up a level. However, it looks like the Braves were not done there.
This week saw both Alex Lodise and Carter Beck get promoted, which is VERY interesting. Beck was only drafted this year, but he was laying waste to low-A to start his career, so challenging him with a promotion to High-A Rome makes sense. On the other hand, Lodise was one of those guys who got promoted in the previous wave, but he played so well at Rome that the Braves decided to give the shortstop a chance to see Double-A pitching before the end of the season. At this rate, Lodise might play his way into a chance for some big-league playing time sometime next season (whenever that ends up being).
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