Today, the Atlanta Braves officially released Orlando Arcia. Arcia, who was designated for assignment when Ronald Acuña Jr. returned to the Braves lineup on Friday, struggled to meet expectations in 2025. Through 14 games, he just wasn’t producing, and the Braves made a clear move by turning to Nick Allen as their primary shortstop. Allen’s performance at shortstop has been nothing short of remarkable, and I fully expect him to stick there moving forward.
The Braves also made another move yesterday, acquiring infielder Johnathan Ornelas from the Texas Rangers in a trade. Ornelas was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett and will look to refine his game. The 24-year-old infielder has only appeared in four games this season and was 0-for-5 for the Rangers, spending most of his time in the minors, where he played 30 games for Round Rock, batting .204 with a .339 OBP and .574 OPS.
There’s work to be done, but the Braves are clearly focused on building up depth across the infield. Baseball is a fluid sport, and moves are always happening. With June on the horizon, as the season moves on, we’ll keep an eye on what the Braves decide to do next, whether it’s a bigger buy or a potential sale down the line.
