Braves fans were disappointed when Atlanta opted not to call up Rio Ruiz earlier in the week Adonis Garcia went down with an injury. Those fans got their wish later that day, albeit, it did not happen exactly the way they may have wanted it to. Due to Freddie Freeman’s hand injury, the Braves called up Ruiz for Thursday night’s series finale against the Blue Jays.
The Braves obviously wanted to give Ruiz more time in the minors before giving him a taste of the big leagues, but a lot of time it is injuries that decide when these young players get the call. With Freeman down, the Braves are desperate for two things: left-handed hitters and power. Ruiz bring Atlanta both of those things. Ruiz was hitting .262 with 4 home-runs in AAA Gwinett, but was a red-hot .341 over his last 10 games.
The Braves also signed James Loney to a minor-league deal yesterday. The left-handed first baseman played in 100 games for the Mets last year, hitting .265 with 9 home-runs. Loney has yet to play this season, so he will be given some time to train in the minors. Once he is ready, it is likely Ruiz will be on his way back to AAA. Unless of course, he starts tearing up the MLB. Ruiz went 0-3 with a strikeout yesterday in his debut.