Drake Baldwin set for rehab assignment with Gwinnett this weekend
Baldwin will test his strained right oblique with live pitching first, then two Gwinnett games will show whether Atlanta can get its starting catcher back soon.
Drake Baldwin’s first real checkpoint back will come at the plate and behind it. He is slated to face live pitching Thursday and Friday at the Braves’ Florida complex, then begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett this weekend, a stretch that will tell Atlanta whether its starting catcher is close to being activated from the injured list.
Baldwin has been out since May 19, when the Braves put him on the 10-day injured list with a strained right oblique. An MRI showed a Grade 1 strain, and the early return path has already included batting practice and catching bullpens as he works back toward game speed. The real test now is whether the oblique holds up under live swings, then through back-to-back games in Gwinnett.
What Atlanta will watch in North Georgia is specific: how Baldwin moves in and out of his crouch, how he handles throws after receiving pitches, and whether his swing looks the same against live arms after the layoff. At the plate, the Braves do not need a reminder of what he was producing before the injury. In 48 games, Baldwin hit .303/.389/.543 with 13 home runs and 38 RBI, and at the time he went on the injured list he led all big league catchers in home runs.
His absence has already changed Atlanta’s catching picture. Sandy León and Austin Wynns have been covering the position while Baldwin is sidelined, and Sean Murphy is also on the injured list after suffering a fractured left middle finger. Murphy was moved to the 60-day IL, deepening the need for Baldwin to come back as more than just a stopgap bat.
The Braves have leaned on Baldwin since he made his MLB debut on Opening Day and took over as the club’s starting catcher. Drafted by Atlanta in the third round of the 2022 MLB June Amateur Draft out of Missouri State University, he has already shown enough force to matter in the middle of the order. MLB.com listed his expected return as June 16, and if the weekend in Gwinnett goes cleanly, the Braves can move from waiting to planning around one of their most productive hitters behind the plate.
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