Ha-Seong Kim was left out of the lineup against the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday after news about Lane Thomas.
The Atlanta Braves placed Thomas on the 10-day injured list with a strained left intercostal muscle.
Thomas never hit as the Braves hoped, but he was still valuable as a right-handed bat that produced against left-handed pitching.
He is hitting .171 with one home run and three RBIs in 21 games since Atlanta acquired him.
According to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman, the injury casts doubt on Thomas’ postseason availability. Thomas plans to see a specialist this weekend to discuss speeding up his recovery.
The unfortunate setback reshaped Friday’s lineup. Mauricio Dubon started at shortstop and Mike Yastrzemski took over in left field.
Braves manager Walt Weiss addressed the change before the game. He laid out how he plans to use Kim going forward.
Weiss Lays Out His Plan For Ha-Seong Kim And Dubon
Weiss confirmed his plan to reporters Friday, according to Bowman. Dubon will likely shift to left field against left-handed starters. Kim will take over at shortstop in those matchups.
The setup makes sense for Atlanta.
Yastrzemski bats left-handed and has struggled against lefties. Sitting him against them and sending the right-handed Kim and Dubon keeps more right-handed bats in the lineup.
It mirrors the platoon role Thomas previously filled alongside Yastrzemski in left field.
Dubon offers flexibility. He has played shortstop, center field and left field for Atlanta this year. Across 140 games, he is batting .264 with a .308 on-base percentage and a .691 OPS.
Kim has shown signs of improvement since mid-August after a difficult season. He added a two-hit, two-RBI game in Thursday’s win over the Tampa Bay Rays.
Braves Rally Late To Beat Phillies Friday Night
Atlanta’s plan got its first test that same night. Philadelphia started right-hander Aaron Nola, so Dubon played shortstop and Yastrzemski started in left field.
The Braves beat the Phillies 6-5 in 11 innings.
Atlanta also recalled outfielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr. from Triple-A Gwinnett to fill the open roster spot after Thomas’ injury.
Braves Announce Sudden Ha-Seong Kim News After Lane Thomas Decision