ATLANTA -- Braves outfielder Lane Thomas -- sidelined since Sept. 8 with a left intercostal strain -- rejoined Atlanta's roster for its NLDS showdown against the Dodgers.
Thomas was not in the lineup for Game 1 against Dodgers lefty Tarik Skubal on Saturday afternoon, but his availability could impact Atlanta's lineup moving forward with L.A. starting another left-hander (Blake Snell) in Game 2.
"I feel good," Thomas said prior to Game 1 on Saturday. "I feel as prepared as I can be in that short time on the IL. Yeah, just glad that they were able to help me get back in time."
It wasn't easy.
Thomas had been getting closer in recent days, but he wasn't quite ready for the club's Wild Card Series matchup against the Phillies earlier this week.
He managed to clear those final hurdles on Friday after the rest of his teammates had already departed for L.A.
"I kind of just had to check some boxes to make sure I could withhold the workload -- did that [Friday]," Thomas said. "Took some live at-bats, then took a later flight out and got here last night."
Thomas was acquired from the Royals at the Trade Deadline largely because of his ability to hit left-handed pitching.
Though he wasn't in the lineup for Game 1, Thomas' return could allow Mauricio Dubón to move to shortstop for Game 2 in place of Ha-Seong Kim, who hit .116 with a .359 OPS over 147 plate appearances this season.
"With Lane, it was more about he hasn't been playing -- didn't want to throw him right into the fire like that," Braves manager Walt Weiss said. "He hasn't played. I wanted to give him a day to run around out there. We'll face another lefty tomorrow; good chance he'll be in there tomorrow."
As for Game 1, Skubal obviously isn't just any left-hander.
Thomas is 1-for-13 (.077) with six strikeouts in his career against Skubal. The one hit, though, was a memorable one: A go-ahead grand slam that held up as the decisive hit for the Guardians in their winner-take-all victory over the Tigers in the 2024 ALDS.
"You don't see a guy who throws so hard consistently with that much control," Thomas said. "It seems like he has really good command of his fastball. He's got three, I feel like, pretty plus pitches. I don't know if righties have a ton of success off him either.
"I liked competing against him those last few years [in the AL Central together], and it's cool to see him."
Not to mention, Thomas hasn’t seen any game action in nearly a month. His tenure with the Braves hasn't exactly gone to plan to this point.
Not only did he appear in just 21 games before landing on the IL down the stretch, but he also hit just .171 with a .578 OPS in that limited sample. Including his time with the Royals, Thomas slashed .224/.318/.383 this season -- but he still held his own against left-handed pitching.
Thomas had an .803 OPS in 165 plate appearances against southpaws this season, compared to a .623 OPS in 209 PAs against righties. That's been the story for his entire career, as he has an .848 career OPS vs. lefties and a .664 mark against right-handers.
"I feel like it's just kind of freeing a little bit," Thomas said of the postseason. "You're not playing for the stats. The season's over, you can kind of just go out and do your best.
"It feels like summer baseball as a kid again. It was pretty cool the last time I got to play in the playoffs, it's freeing. The one goal is winning. It takes the pressure off of trying to perform yourself and just doing what you can to help the team get over the hump."