What will the Braves do at shortstop?

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Orlando Arcia is nearing a return. Braden Shewmake is raking at the Triple-A level. And Vaughn Grissom is showing his bat can be valuable at the big league level.

Having three shortstop options certainly seems to be a “good problem to have.” As you likely know, these “things work themselves out.” You’ve just got to “trust the process.”

Now that we have exhausted these cliches, let’s look at what might actually happen over the next week or two.

Arcia says he could be ready to play when the Braves begin a three-game series against the Orioles next weekend. Even if his projection is a bit ambitious, he is likely to activated from the injured list within these next two weeks.

Once Arcia returns, he’ll most certainly regain the everyday shortstop role. The veteran played great defense and produced a .911 OPS over the 13 games he played before his left wrist was fractured by a Hunter Greene fastball on April 12.

The Braves must then decide what to do with Grissom. It seems best to have him playing an everyday role at this point of his career. But before shipping him back to Triple-A Gwinnett, there’s reason to wonder if his right-handed bat could still provide value in Atlanta, at least until Travis d'Arnaud returns from the concussion injured list.

Grissom has had some clutch hits while batting .289 with a .630 OPS through his first 12 games with Atlanta this year. It wouldn’t be prudent to keep him around to serve as a designated hitter on a long-term basis. But it might be beneficial to use him in that role instead of Marcell Ozuna, at least until d’Arnaud returns.

Once d’Arnaud is activated, he and Sean Murphy will be the primary DH options.

d’Arnaud has taken batting practice on the field daily over the past week and he’s caught a couple side sessions. The concern remains how he feels when he recovers after completing this activity. So, it remains too early to gauge exactly when he might return to serve as a catcher and designated hitter.

But it does look like Arcia will rejoin Atlanta’s lineup soon. If he extends the success he had before fracturing his wrist, the Braves will be thrilled with what they’re getting from Dansby Swanson's replacement. But if he rekindles concerns about his ability to be an everyday player, Shewmake might get a chance.

There’s no doubt Shewmake is defensively ready to be an everyday shortstop. But as he remains at the Triple-A level, there’s still some concern about his offensive potential. But he quieted those concerns while hitting .309 with a .908 OPS over his past 13 games entering Thursday.