What You Need to Know For Ozzie Albies Return to the Atlanta Braves Lineup

Atlanta Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies returns as solely a right-handed hitter. He had a good rehab assignment but he might still need some adjusting.

Ozzie Albies returns to the Atlanta Braves lineup and will get his first test as a right-handed only batter. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images / Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

Atlanta Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies will rejoin the team on Friday when they start their series in Miami against the Marlins.

He will make his long-awaited return. He hasn’t played since July 21 when he suffered a fractured wrist. 

Albies had a strong rehab assignment with the Stripers. In two games, he went 4-for-8 with a home run, three RBIs and a walk. 

As planned, he batted exclusively right-handed in all nine of his plate appearances. As expected, he tore up lefties in his first game on Tuesday. 

However, the important stats were how he fared righty on righty. It’s a matchup rarely seen when he bats. It’s happened zero times this season and he’s had five such plate appearances over the last three seasons. 

The Jumbo Shrimp went with exclusively righties on the mound in his second rehab start. Albies went 2-for-5. Both hits were singles that were hard groundballs that found a hole in the infield. 

He struck out zero times—his three outs where a ground out, a pop-up and a fly out. 

Albies saw the ball relatively well. He was making contact. However, he didn’t hit any hard line drives and one of the balls he elevated went straight up. 

Any Ozzie Albies is better than no Ozzie Albies. That being said, we’ll need to be patient as he continues to get used to batting right-handed against righties. 

He’ll get his first Major League test against a righty in his first game back. The Marlins are sending Valente Bellozo to the mound. 

What could help make this a more favorable matchup for Albies is the success righties have against Bellozo. Right-handed hitters are batting .256 with a .853 OPS against the Marlins’ rookie. This is compared to the .236 opponent’s average and .706 opponent’s OPS when he faces lefties. 

The Marlins’ Saturday starter is to be determined, but Sunday is also a righty. Adam Oller could be a bit of a tougher matchup for Albies. The 29-year-old righty has held same-handed hitters to a .196 batting average and a .596 OPS. Meanwhile, lefties tear this guy up with a .262 average and a .908 OPS. 

The Marlins also have plenty of righties in the bullpen. They have one lefty in total. Albies will have his work cut out for him out of the gate. 

The Braves start their series with the Marlins on Friday. First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m. EDT.