The Atlanta Braves have an Austin Riley problem. The 29-year-old third baseman struggled in 2025, spending most of the year dealing with a sports hernia that forced him to undergo season-ending core surgery.
This year, Riley had no excuse to struggle and has been available for the entire season. Unfortunately, he has not only failed to live up to expectations but has been the weakest link on a Braves roster that would be one of the best in baseball if he were playing like he was at his peak.
Across 106 games this season, Riley has posted a .216 batting average, .293 on-base percentage, .644 OPS, 12 home runs and 50 RBIs.
The Braves were forced to play two games against the New York Mets on Wednesday after Monday's series opener was rained out.
Atlanta lost the first matchup Tuesday, and unfortunately also dropped Game 1 on Wednesday by a final score of 3-2.
Riley's struggles were on full display as he went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. His final punchout was the most disappointing, coming with two outs in the top of the ninth inning and a chance to tie the game with a hit.
He struck out instead, and Braves fans were quick to call for Riley to either be traded, demoted to Triple-A or moved to the bench.
"Can we DH for Austin Riley in Game 2 and let Chris Sale hit?" a fan asked.
One fan said, "Please get Riley off the team."
Another wrote, "Get that bum Riley off this team ASAP."
"Riley is a terrible player right now. Maybe some AAA could do him some good," added one more.
"Austin Riley shouldn't start for awhile," said another.
Trading Riley would be virtually impossible given he is still signed through the 2032 season on his massive 10-year, $212 million contract.
Atlanta can only hope he turns it around and returns to his peak form as one of the most formidable hitters in baseball as October approaches, because the Braves will need him if they want to make a deep postseason run.
