9:30am: The Braves formally announced the signing of Urshela. Riley has been placed on the 10-day IL to open a spot on the active roster, while lefty who underwent season-ending hip surgery recently was moved to the 60-day IL George Hill Jersey to open a 40-man roster spot. 8:20am: The Braves and Urshela have agreed to a deal, Jon Heyman of the New York Post. 7:50am: The Braves are nearing a major league deal with third baseman , per a report from this morning. Urshela was recently by the Tigers, wholl be on the hook for the remainder of his $1.5MM salary. The Braves will only owe Urshela the prorated league minimum for the time he spends on the big league roster or injured list. Urshela is a client of Rep 1 Baseball. The news comes just one day after Braves third baseman was diagnosed with a that is expected to sideline him for between six and eight weeks. If that timeline holds, it will leave him out of action for at least the remainder of the regular season and the early portions of the postseason, though its feasible he could return to the field if Atlanta makes a deep enough run into the playoffs. With utilityman already covering for the injured at second base, that seemingly left the club to rely on top infield prospect and depth infielder to handle the hot corner down the stretch. With Urshela now in the fold, the club will add a veteran third baseman into the fold who could help raise the floor on their production at the position in Rileys absence. For Urshela, the deal represents an opportunity to get regular at-bats with a playoff contender down the stretch while also attempting to re-establish himself as a regular option following a disappointing stint in Detroit this year. Following a 2023 season where he was limited to just 62 games by a season-ending pelvic fracture, Urshela hit free agency and signed a worth just $1.5MM with the Tigers back in February. At the time, it seemed to be a bargain for a player who had been a steady regular at third base for several years. It quickly turned sour, however, as Urshela delivered his worst season since establishing himself as a regular with the Yankees back in 2019. The 32-year-old hit just .243/.286/.333 (73 wRC+) in 325 trips to the plate with the Tigers while splitting time between the infield corners. Defensive metrics are extremely mixed on Urshelas defense at third, as the veteran has accumulated -17 Outs Above Average at the position since becoming a regular back in 2019. Brutal as that figure may seem, Defensive Runs Saved actually has Urshela as a plus defender at the hot corner over that same timeframe with a +4 figure overall. Still, even the most favorable views of Urshelas defense leave it difficult to justify him as an everyday option if his hitting numbers remain where they were in Detroit. Fortunately, theres some reasons for optimism regarding the veterans future. His track record over the past half decade speaks for itself, as he entered the 2024 season as a solid .291/.335/.452 (115 wRC+) hitter since his 2019 breakout with New York. Thats the 16th-best figure among all qualified third baseman over that time frame. Whats more, Urshelas .271 BABIP is by far the lowest of his career; he entered the 2024 season with a career .319 BABIP that had jumped to .334 since his breakout in 2019. A return to form in that regard could help Urshela put up numbers closer to league average offensively. His batted ball data also suggests hes in line for some positive regre sion. The 32-year-olds .271 wOBA is a far cry from his .305 xwOBA, a figure that (while still below average) would put him roughly in line with his more palatable 2021 and 2023 seasons, where his offensive output was around 3% and 8% worse than league average (by wRC+). Even that level of production would make Urshela a solid fill-in at the hot corner for Atlanta, particularly if the club doesnt want to push Alvarez into an everyday big league role in the middle of a pennant race at just 21 years old. Eric Bledsoe Jersey