Braves 3b Austin Riley leaves the game with a strained left side.
NEW YORK (AP)— Austin Riley, Atlanta’s third baseman, left Sunday night’s game against the New York Mets due to discomfort in his left side.
Zack Short replaced Riley in the bottom of the fourth inning. Riley experienced some difficulty during batting practice, according to Braves manager Brian Snitker, but he did not inform anyone on the team.
He said anything when he felt it again early in the game. “He was sore,” Snitker explained following his team’s 4-3 loss. “I just didn’t want to take any chances, so we’ll look at him again tomorrow and see what’s up.”
Batting third in the lineup, Riley singled with two outs in the first inning and then struck out swinging in the third. He is hitting .245 with three homers and 18 RBIs this season.
The two-time All-Star has finished sixth or seventh in NL MVP voting each of the past three years. He batted .281 with 37 homers, 97 RBIs and an .861 OPS last season, winning his second Silver Slugger award.
“I’m glad Austin said something. I don’t want him going through something like that and then take a big swing and – it’s smart on his part to mention that. A cool night, damp and all that stuff. One game’s not worth that,” Snitker said. “We don’t mess around with this stuff.”
Short, who began the season with the Mets, made his Braves debut after being acquired Thursday from Boston for cash. He drew leadoff walks in the sixth and eighth, scoring a tiebreaking run each time on a single Marcell Ozuna.
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