Meet the new Brave Joey Wendle; updates on Riley and Murphy

“It’s pretty wild,” Wendle said before Friday’s series opener against the Pirates. “I think I remember telling him in spring training (for) New York that I thought there would be a way for us to coexist on the same team. I didn’t know he would do on two teams in the same year.

The Braves signed Wendle to a major league deal on Friday. They will pay Wendle, a utility infielder, a prorated amount of the $740,000 minimum salary as long as he remains in the majors with them. The Mets recently released Wendle, so they will pay the remainder of his $2 million guaranteed salary minus the amount the Braves end up paying Wendle.

On Monday, New York officially released Wendle. He said the Braves contacted him shortly afterward. He knew they were interested.

Now, Wendle plays for a team that has won six straight National League East titles.

“I played against this team for so long, I saw what great teams they had,” Wendle said. “Usually when a team has a perennial winner, the organization is doing something right. Obviously, we see the talent on the field. As far as what’s going on behind the scenes, I’m looking forward to getting acclimated to all that stuff as well.

To free up a 26-man roster spot for Wendle, the Braves optioned Luke Williams to Triple-A Gwinnett. Wendle and Short will handle third base duties until Austin Riley (intercostal inflammation) returns. Riley is unlikely to play in Pittsburgh this weekend.

Wendle is a left-handed hitter, making him a good complement to the right-handed Short. He’s a good base runner. He is known as a great clubhouse guy.

“I’ve seen him for a long time now, and he’s just a versatile, professional guy,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “I know he’s a high-quality guy, as far as makeup and everything, (just) talking to people. He plays all over the diamond.

Wendle debuted in 2016 for Oakland, where he hooked up with Matt Olson. He played for Tampa Bay from 2018 to 2021, including playing in the World Series, then spent two years with Miami before this season.

Wendle was an All-Star for the Rays in 2021, but has struggled since then. From the start of 2022 through Friday, he was hitting .237 with a .604 OPS over 680 at-bats, including an 8-for-36 mark for the Mets before they released him.

He was once a pretty ordinary player. Now he’s a bench guy.

“I definitely have a little more of a different role now,” Wendle said. “I had a bad season last year. I feel like I definitely have a lot more to offer, I feel like there’s still a lot to do. I’m looking forward to being a part of this team and getting to know the staff and things like that.

No one knows how often he will be used, especially with Riley returning soon.

But …

“Whatever it is, I’ll be ready to answer it,” Wendle said. “I can’t promise much, but I’ll give you everything I’ve got – I can promise.”

After New York designated Wendle for assignment on May 15, he returned home to his family. He spent time with his wife and their three sons, ages 6, 4 and one and a half. He was a full-time dad while he waited for a call.

“You never know what’s going to happen,” Wendle said. “I felt like I could still play, I felt like I could still contribute to a major league team.”

Riley gets closer

As previously mentioned, Riley likely won’t return until the team returns home on Monday. It’s not guaranteed he’ll be in the lineup that day, but it appears he won’t play in Pittsburgh.

Riley took batting practice on the field and looked healthy while doing so. It was a big step for Riley, who began his progression at batting a few days ago in Chicago.

This question has been asked a lot by fans: Why wouldn’t the Braves place Riley on injured reserve?

As we wrote, they didn’t need a roster spot.

“We just haven’t needed it yet,” Snitker said. “I think if we needed this place, we probably would have used it. We don’t need it.

Think back to the opening day roster. Riley and Luis Guilorme were both in attendance. Forrest Wall, an outfielder, made the team as the last player off the bench.

Well, now Wall is in Gwinnett, and the Braves have Short and Wendle, with Riley still on the roster because he didn’t go on injured reserve. They don’t need anyone else.

Snitker said it best here:

“We could have had someone come here and sit down. (That), in essence, is what it would have been. This would have been a runner we would have used maybe twice in that time.

Murphy is close too

On Thursday, Sean Murphy hit a second home run in two rehab games. It was a good sign as he looks to come back from a left oblique strain.

Snitker said Murphy — who was scheduled to go nine innings Friday — could be “very close” to joining the Braves.

After Friday, the Braves will evaluate how Murphy feels.

“But if he goes nine innings and feels good with the bat like that, then we’ll kind of be close to bringing him back too, I guess,” Snitker said. “It would be pretty good if we got all those guys back.”

On Friday, Murphy actually caught all nine innings of Gwinnett’s loss to Jacksonville. He went 2-for-5 with an RBI.

In three rehab games, he is 5 for 14 with two homers and four RBIs.