Up until his most recent hot streak, the question of whether or not the Atlanta Braves would ultimately exercise their 2026 club option on Ozzie Albies was an open one. Most agreed that Albies' option was so cheap that there wasn't much risk in the Braves running him back as their second baseman, but Albies was bad enough in the first half to not make it a lock. Unfortunately, Monday night saw Albies break his hand on a swing and just like that, everything is up in the air again.
At first glance, the idea that Albies could have played his last game with the Braves because of an end-of-season injury that "shouldn't" impact his availability to start the 2026 season. However, despite the fact that Albies' option for next year is only $7 million, there is an argument the Braves could make to justify moving on.
Ozzie Albies' latest injury could be the last straw for his time with the Braves
By all accounts, Albies' injury return timeline is somewhere in the six to eight week range and that, in theory, means that he would be healed up in plenty of time to have a relatively normal offseason. Barring a setback, he would still have a couple of months to ramp his baseball activities back up and be in shape to start spring training. Problem solved, right?
Well, Albies' injury can't be considered in a vacuum here. He just spent most of the first half of the 2025 season sucking because Albies hadn't regained strength in his wrist that he broke last year. Before that was a broken toe, and before that it was it was hamstring issues, shoulder surgery, and a broken foot and pinky. Hell, Albies couldn't escape the minor leagues without breaking his elbow on, yes, a swing not dissimilar to the cut he took on Monday night.
If you are in the Braves' position, needing to revamp a roster and get back into contention after back-to-back disappointing season, can you really trust Albies to stay healthy next season? Even if you think he will bounce right back from this injury which is not a sure thing whatsoever, history suggests that he will have another injury and miss significant time again.
Odds are still good that Atlanta will at least exercise Albies' option for 2026 because it is just that cheap. However, if you think the Braves might not be a little more willing to trade Albies this winter after this latest injury, you are sorely mistaken.