Braves notebook: Sale’s batting practice, lineup experiments and more

The move resulted in lackluster results — White went 0-for-4 with a strikeout — but with 49 games remaining in the Braves’ lost season, the club can use the remaining time to experiment with new matchups.

And that includes batting White at leadoff for just the third time this year.

“Given the situation with the injuries and things like that, (you can) kind of mix and match,” Snitker said. “We haven’t hit on the right secret sauce yet, so we’re still mixing the pot.”

The Braves employed numerous lineups this season, but most were to no avail. The club used six different leadoff hitters, while seven Braves have hit second in the order. The bottom of the club’s lineup has seen even more shuffling, with 12 different batters slotting into the seventh and eighth slots.

The Braves are solely focused on 2026 with likely no postseason to look forward to — their playoff odds officially dropped to zero on FanGraphs — and testing different lineups allows the club to see which players can contribute.

Sale’s batting practice

Injuries left the Braves piecing together their starting rotation, but the club will likely see the return of a key member this season. Chris Sale, who joined the injured list with two fractured ribs on June 21, threw a scheduled batting practice on Thursday.

And all eyes were on the reigning Cy Young Award winner.

Snitker and pitching coach Rick Kranitz stood behind home plate, while a line of Braves hung draped over the first base dugout. Fans even crowded the deck of the adjacent Omni Hotel, all eager to catch a glimpse of Sale back on the mound.

“I think today was a good kind of box to check,” Sale said. “I think after a long layoff when you go through something like this, most important thing is feeling good afterwards. I was able to throw a lot of strikes too. So we’ll see what tomorrow brings and go from there.”

Sale threw around 30 pitches in his first live batting practice. He faced both a right-hander and a left-hander — in infielder Jonathan Ornelas and Single-A outfielder Eric Hartman — and recorded five strikeouts in two simulated innings (which consisted of more than six outs).

If Sale comes out of the outing without any soreness, he will make a rehabilitation start. And then, it’s back on the mound for the Braves’ ace.

“I don’t care what the record says. I like to compete, and I want to go out there and do my job,” Sale said. “I’ve missed enough baseball in my career that this isn’t something that I’m OK with having being done. I think it’s important to finish a year not on the IL and be able to at least hang my hat on the fact that I was able to finish the year pitching and upright, going into the offseason, knowing that there’s no real questions or concerns or anything that I’m going to have to (address).”

Holmes explains his nonsurgical decision

Fellow starter Grant Holmes, one of the Braves’ six pitchers on the injured list, explained his decision to opt for nonsurgical rehabilitation on his partially torn UCL. The 29-year-old right-hander said the timing of the injury persuaded him to wait on undergoing any potential procedure.

“Just knowing how I felt at the time, I couldn’t bring myself to let somebody cut on me,” Holmes said, standing next to his locker. “I’ve gotta at least try it.”

Holmes confirmed he suffered a partial tear of his UCL — a full tear typically requires Tommy John surgery — during his July 26 start against the Rangers, but the timeline lined up for him to attempt a nonsurgical option.

He will begin plyometric workouts in four weeks and start throwing in six. And if the rehabilitation work is successful, Holmes will throw a simulated game in November. But if the work fails to heal the injury, he will receive surgery and miss most — if not all — of 2026, which would be a similar recovery time to if he opted for a procedure immediately.

“I feel, honestly, really good,” Holmes said. “A lot better than I think that everybody has expected me to. Every day it’s gotten better, so I feel like it’s got a very good chance to work.”

Harris II’s adjustment

Michael Harris II appears to have broken out of his slump — batting .296 in his last seven games and .390 in his last 15 — and it’s all thanks to a mechanical adjustment.

The starting center fielder raised his hands in his batting stance, similar to where they were placed during his stellar rookie season that saw him hit .297 with 19 home runs across 114 games.

“The easiest thing to do is to go back to what I was doing my whole life,” said Harris, who hit a home run in the Braves’ loss to the Brewers Wednesday night. “When I first got called up, my hands were up high, so it’s kind of a natural movement that I went back to.”

Harris’ turnaround means little for the Braves in 2025 but is a positive sign looking for a club looking to rebound in 2026. The Braves will likely obtain an offensive upgrade at shortstop — and have a decision to make with Ozzie Albies’ club option — so having a producing center fielder would be comforting.

And Harris appears to be headed in the right direction.

“The hitting guys have been talking to him, and it takes a while before guys let him in,” Snitker said. “And credit to Michael.”

The Braves (47-66) welcomed the Marlins (56-57) to Truist Park on Thursday for the first of five games in four days.