ST. LOUIS – Braves right-hander Jackson Stephens, who exited Friday’s win over the Cardinals after a line drive hit him in the head, was diagnosed with a mild concussion and landed on the seven-day concussion injured list.
The good news is this: Stephens underwent further testing, including for a fracture, at a local hospital and everything returned clean.
The Braves on Saturday recalled right-hander Jay Jackson to take Stephens’ roster spot. Jackson has not pitched in the big leagues this season, but has allowed only three earned runs over 15 2/3 innings for Triple-A Gwinnett this season.
In the ninth inning Friday, Brendan Donovan’s 90.4 mph liner struck Stephens in the upper-right part of his forehead. Stephens crouched down after it happened, but eventually walked off under his own power.
After the game, manager Brian Snitker said Stephens was aware after sustaining the injury. Spencer Strider, who started the game, said Stephens appeared to be “in good spirits, all things considered.”
But the play left Stephens’ teammates and coaches worried about him.
“It honestly almost felt like we lost the game when that happened,” William Contreras said through interpreter Franco García. “It’s just kind of one of those things, like we knew we were winning, but he’s such a great teammate, and obviously this clubhouse is full of great teammates as well, so when you see something like that happen to someone you care about, a teammate, it kind of just takes the wind out of your sails. It was hard. Even though we won that game, we kind of lost that happiness and that joy.”
“That’s like the .01 percent of plays that really scares you in baseball,” Strider said. “He’s a tough, hard-headed guy. He wore it pretty well, and I think he’s going to be all right. And walked right off like a champ. Right away, you could tell it hit his head, and it was serious, but I think he’s going to be all right. He’s a tough guy, so he should be good.”
Fortunately, one of the scariest types of plays in baseball did not turn out to be worse. It appears Stephens will be OK.
Arcia set to begin rehab assignment
In an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Aug. 10, Orlando Arcia, who had sustained a left hamstring strain the night before, said through interpreter Franco García that the Braves told him he could be ready to return in three to four weeks.
That timeline appears to look rather accurate, barring a setback.
Arcia on Saturday was set to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett. Since the injury, Snitker has said multiple times that Arcia progressed faster than he could have imagined.
Arcia filled in capably at second base when Ozzie Albies fractured his foot. Upon Arcia’s return, it seems Vaughn Grissom that would still get the majority of playing time at second base until Albies returns. On Friday, Snitker made it sound as if Albies is nearing his own rehab assignment.
This season, Arcia is batting .243 with a .726 OPS. He has seven homers and 26 RBIs. His arm strength has allowed him to make several nice plays at second base.
