With the injury to Ender Inciarte, speculation came quickly that heralded speedster prospect Mallex Smith could be among the options available to replace him as Ender's hamstring heals. Then yesterday came word that Inciarte would indeed be placed on the DL and that Mallex would presumably fill in in the outfield.
Today, the Braves made the roster move official
OF Mallex Smith has been recalled from @GwinnettBraves. pic.twitter.com/YGuwYKuXZX
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) April 11, 2016
Mallex Smith had an impressive showing in Spring Training for the Braves before the season started, showing the speed that has tantalized fans for the past year as well as an improved line drive approach which showed that he had a little bit of pop in his bat (or at least enough to get XBHs more consistently).
Its unclear as to how long Mallex will be in Atlanta for (that will depend largely on the performance of Smith, the other outfielders on the roster, and Ender's recovery), but he should at least provide a spark on the basepaths and give fans a glimpse of the future that the minor league has to offer.
Mallex has batted .400/.438/.667 thus far (3 games) in Gwinnett in 2016 and combined for a .306/.373/.386 line in 2015 with 57 steals across two levels of the minors.