The Atlanta Braves made another round of roster moves ahead of their Tuesday doubleheader against the Washington Nationals, recalling left-hander José Suarez and right-hander Nathan Wiles from Triple-A Gwinnett.
In a corresponding move, the team optioned struggling pitchers Alexis Díaz and Connor Seabold. To open a 40-man roster spot for Suarez, catcher Sean Murphy was shifted to the 60-day injured list.
José Suarez Gets the Ball in Game One
Suarez, acquired from the Los Angeles Angels just before the start of the season, will start game one of the doubleheader. Braves fans may have forgotten his brief cameo earlier in the year: he appeared in three April games, logging 7.1 innings with a 2.45 ERA.
However, his control issues were glaring, walking nearly a quarter of batters faced with a 23.3% walk rate. Since then, he’s settled in at Gwinnett with a 3.50 ERA while working primarily as a starter.
Nathan Wiles Back for a Fourth Stint
This will be the fourth call-up of the season for 27-year-old Nathan Wiles, though his actual big-league experience remains minimal. His lone MLB outing came during his first stint with Atlanta, when he allowed three runs in a single inning.
In Triple-A, though, he has been one of Gwinnett’s most reliable arms, posting a 3.04 ERA across 112.2 innings. For the doubleheader, Wiles will serve as a long relief option.
Díaz’s Rough Trial Run Ends Quickly
The Braves’ experiment with former All-Star reliever Alexis Díaz appears to be over, at least for now. Díaz, who was brought in as a potential bullpen boost, struggled mightily in his short stint.
In three appearances, he matched his 35.7% strikeout rate with an equally disastrous 35.7% walk rate. While he induced grounders every time the ball was put in play — literally a 100% ground ball rate — he still allowed three earned runs in just 2.2 innings.
Connor Seabold, another struggling arm, joins Díaz in being optioned back to Gwinnett.
Braves Continue Pitching Carousel
With the postseason picture fading and the 2025 season nearing its conclusion, Atlanta continues to shuffle its pitching staff in search of consistency.
Suarez and Wiles may not be household names, but both have the chance to prove themselves once more on baseball’s biggest stage. Whether they stick this time remains to be seen.
