Atlanta Braves Announce Austin Riley Demotion Before Rays Game

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PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - SEPTEMBER 6: Austin Riley #27 of the Atlanta Braves hits an RBI triple in the top of the ninth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on September 6, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Braves defeated the Phillies 5-4. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

The Atlanta Braves lost their series opener to the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday evening, and now are 3.0 games back of the Los Angeles Dodgers for the No. 2 seed in the NL.

However, Atlanta still holds a 4.0-game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies for the NL East lead.

On Wednesday, the Braves are aiming to tie the series with the Rays and will be sending out Reynaldo Lopez to the mound after being activated off the IL.

Among other changes, Austin Riley has been demoted in the Braves lineup.

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Austin Riley Dropped to 8th in Atlanta Braves Batting Order

For the most part this season, Austin Riley has batted either 7th or 8th for the Atlanta Braves.

In the series opener on Tuesday, Riley batted 7th, but since the Rays are opting to send RHP Griffin Jax to the mound for game two of the series, manager Walt Weiss is opting to drop Riley to 8th in the batting order.

Per @UnderdogMLB, here is the full lineup for the Atlanta Braves on 9/9:

Braves 9/9: “D. Baldwin DH R. Acuña Jr. RF M. Olson 1B M. Harris II CF M. Dubón SS M. Yastrzemski LF O. Albies 2B A. Riley 3B S. Murphy C R. López SP”

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Braves 9/9

D. Baldwin DH R. Acuña Jr. RF M. Olson 1B M. Harris II CF M. Dubón SS M. Yastrzemski LF O. Albies 2B A. Riley 3B S. Murphy C

R. López SP

3:16 pm · 9 Sep 2026

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Inside Austin Riley’s 2026 Season Thus Far

Despite his season-long struggles, Austin Riley has been inserted into the Braves lineup every day.

Which makes sense because he is the Braves’ highest-paid player in franchise history.

This season, Riley has played in 143 games.

He’s batting .224 in 510 at-bats.

Austin Riley has also added 16 home runs, 21 doubles, and an OPS+ of 82. The 82 OPS+ would be a career low.

It would be welcoming for the Braves if Riley can get going before the season concludes, so he can carry momentum into October.

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