Atlanta Braves Lose Mallex Smith to Broken Thumb
One piece of bad news mars an outstanding weekend for Atlanta in New York – we lose Mallex Smith
Yes, it was great news this weekend in the dominant sweep of the Mets… except for one thing.
Mallex Smith left today's game at NYM after being HBP. X-rays taken at the field revealed a fracture of his left thumb.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) June 19, 2016
Mallex Smith was 0-3 today, hitting just .237 for the year, but his OBP was at .312. But despite being whacked on the hand by a 95 mph Antonio Bastardo fastball in the 7th inning, he stayed in the game briefly to run, scoring the 5th run of the 6-0 shutdown victory.
This month, Mallex was elevated to the leadoff position and he has been improving over May and June – hitting .262 over that period with 12 stolen bases (14 for the year). 12 walks have buoyed his usefulness to the team as well while he grow into this new role.
Unfortunately, that growth spurt has to be put on hiatus – probably for at least the next 2 months, thanks to this fracture. It is not his throwing hand that’s impacted, but it will still impact his bat grip until fully healed.
It’s a nasty blow for a Braves’ team that suddenly found the hitting that we’d hoped to see since the beginning of the season.
#Braves CF Mallex Smith will return to ATL to see team hand specialist, but his left thumb is fractured, he'll be out a good while.
— David O'Brien (@DOBrienATL) June 19, 2016
If it does turn out to be 2 months for Smith to return, that could mean he returns right at the minor-league call-up period (September 1st), counting time for a few rehab games.