Manny Machado may be the temporary fix at shortstop while the San Diego Padres are without exciting rookie Fernando Tatis Jr.
Tatis was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain on Tuesday prior to the second game of the four-game set at Atlanta. The Braves took the opener 4-3 on Monday before the Padres responded with a 4-3 decision Tuesday. The series continues Wednesday evening.
There is no immediate date set for the return of Tatis, who is still undergoing tests to reveal the extent of his injury.
The rookie shortstop, batting .300 with six home runs, was injured on Sunday when he stretched to receive a throw on a force out at second base. Tatis walked off the field on his own power, but wasn't in the lineup on Monday.
"We care a lot about him, we think a lot of him, we love the way he's stared his big league career," San Diego manager Andy Green said. "We're going to take care of him. We're going to put him in the position where he has his best shot at health for a long period of time."
Machado has extensive experience at shortstop in recent seasons after playing third base exclusively for the first three seasons of his career. He played shortstop 147 games between the Baltimore Orioles and Los Angeles Dodgers in 2018 and has played in 201 games at the position.
Among other options for the Padres at shortstop is Ty France, who made his major league debut on Friday. France entered Monday's game at third base, his first appearance in the field, and started there Tuesday while Machado shifted to shortstop.
Greg Garcia, who started at second base Tuesday, and Luis Urias, now in Triple-A El Paso, have also started at shortstop this season for the Padres.
The Braves have their own injury issues. Third baseman Josh Donaldson missed the Tuesday game due to right calf soreness and could be out on Wednesday. Atlanta is trying to be careful with Donaldson, who also dealt with calf issues each of the previous two seasons.
"After the game (Monday), he had some shallow pain," Braves manager Brian Snitker told reporters. "Situations like that, you can't tell until the next day when they come in. There's evidently a little something there. So we're just going to err on the side of caution."
The pitching matchup Wednesday features Atlanta lefty Max Fried (3-1, 2.30) vs. San Diego right-hander Cal Quantrill, who will make his major league debut.
Quantrill, the Padres' first-round draft choice in 2016, was ranked as the team's No. 12 prospect. He started five games for Triple-A El Paso this season and produced a 4.68 ERA, a number inflated by the eight runs he gave up in his first outing. Since then Quantrill's ERA is 2.96.
Quantrill, 24, is the son of former major league pitcher Paul Quantrill.
"It's a dream come true," Quantrill told the media. "In relative terms, I didn't spend all that long in the minors, but it feels like I've been waiting forever for this, so I'm excited to be here."
Fried has been the Braves' best starting pitcher since he joined the rotation on April 4. He is coming off a subpar effort on April 26 against the Colorado Rockies, however, when he gave up four runs on seven hits in 5 1/3 innings with eight strikeouts and no walks.
Fried has made quality starts in four his five starts and has benefited from good run support (5.8 runs per outing). He has never faced the Padres in his career.
--Field Level Media