The Atlanta Braves have made another roster move.
Atlanta signed outfielder Matt Scannell to a minor-league deal on Tuesday. The move was seen on the MLB transactions log.
Scannell is a 24-year-old outfielder who signed with the Blue Jays as an undrafted free agent in 2025. He began his minor-league career in the Florida Complex League but was quickly promoted to the Dunedin Blue Jays, which is Single-A.
Scannell began the 2026 season in Dunedin before being promoted to the Vancouver Canadiens in High-A. However, he struggled at the plate, and Toronto released him on June 27.
Although he was released three days ago, Scannell quickly latched on with the Braves. He was assigned to the Augusta GreenJackets, which is Atlanta’s Single-A affiliate.
Scannell hit .163 with 2 home runs and 12 RBIs this season between Dunedin and Vancouver. In his pro career, he’s hitting .179 with 5 home runs and 23 RBIs.
Atlanta Gets Concerning Acuna Jr. Injury Update
Although the Braves signed another outfielder, Scannell won’t figure into the Braves’ plans for years, if ever.
At the MLB level, however, the Braves are dealing with some key injuries in the outfield. Superstar hitter Ronald Acuna Jr. is on the injured list, and he’s not expected back until after the All-Star break, according to MLB.com’s injury update.
“Didn’t accompany Braves on the current road trip, which runs through June 28. Team is being cautious as he deals with his second hamstring strain since the start of May. Might not return until after the All-Star break,” the update read on June 23.
Acuna was placed on the IL on June 10 with a Grade 1 left hamstring strain. However, at the time, Atlanta didn’t think it would be serious.
“Grade 1, so it’s not terrible, but enough where we had to IL him,” Weiss said. “We’d be waiting around a while, playing shorthanded if we were waiting for it to heal. So we went ahead and put him on the IL. Like I said, I don’t think it’s as severe as the last one, but still going to need some time.”
Yet, it appears the injury is more serious than expected, as Acuna could be out until mid-to-late July.
Acuna is hitting .251 with 7 home runs and 22 RBIs this season.
Atlanta is Scuffling Right Now
The Braves, meanwhile, have struggled as of late as Atlanta is 3-7 in its last 10.
Amid the struggles, the Braves’ lead in the NL East is down to 3.5 games. However, veteran Chris Sale believes it’s all part of a long season and isn’t worried by the stretch.
“This is Major League Baseball,” Sale said. “I don’t know if anyone has gone tip to tip without losing a couple series or going through a 10-, 15-game rough stretch. So you know these things are coming. You obviously don’t know when they are coming. We just need to do our best job to get out of it.”
Atlanta will kick off a three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday. The Braves enter play with a record of 49-33, but they are no longer in the top spot in the NL.
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