Braves’ Drake Baldwin May Miss Critical Stretch — What His Injury Means for Atlanta

The Atlanta Braves have been quietly holding their breath for weeks, and Tuesday night’s series opener against the Chicago White Sox brought another development that has the fanbase buzzing. While Grant Holmes takes the mound for Atlanta and Brandon Eisert counters for Chicago, all eyes are on a far bigger story brewing behind the scenes: the status of red-hot catcher Drake Baldwin.

Oblique Injury Still Lingering — What Fans Aren’t Being Told

Baldwin, who has been sidelined with an oblique strain suffered several weeks ago, was originally expected back sometime between June 16 and June 21. But sources close to the situation now claim the timeline might be more fragile than the team has let on. Manager Walt Weiss stepped to the mic again ahead of Tuesday’s game, and his update has reportedly raised new concerns inside the clubhouse.

According to Weiss, Baldwin is scheduled to face live batting practice on Thursday and Friday. If that goes smoothly, the plan is to send him on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett over the weekend. Insiders say that timetable could theoretically put him back in the lineup by early next week — but one team insider told us that the oblique is a notoriously tricky injury, and the Braves are privately bracing for the possibility of a setback.

MVP-Caliber Production Couldn’t Come Sooner

The Braves currently sit at 45-21, owning the best record in baseball by a comfortable margin — three games clear of both the Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers. But here’s what has observers talking: even with that dominance, the team has been operating without arguably its most impactful hitter. Before the injury, Baldwin was slashing .303 with 13 home runs and 38 RBIs across just 48 games. His OPS sat at an eye-popping .931, and he was driving in nearly a run per game. Some insiders have whispered that Baldwin was quietly inserting himself into the MVP conversation alongside Shohei Ohtani and teammate Matt Olson.

“You don’t just replace that kind of production,” one league analyst told us. “The Braves are lucky their pitching and depth have held up, but if this thing drags into July, you start to wonder about wear and tear on the rest of the lineup.”

What’s Next for Atlanta?

Weiss’s update leaves the door open for a best-case scenario: Baldwin returns for the tail end of next week’s homestand. But the oblique is a muscle that can re-aggravate in an instant, and sources say the Braves are being extra cautious — perhaps more cautious than they’re letting on publicly. For now, the organization is reportedly crossing its fingers that Thursday’s batting practice goes off without a hitch. If not, this could become a storyline that stretches deep into summer.

First pitch for Game 1 is set for 7:40 PM ET, but the real drama is happening well before the first pitch.