CHICAGO -- Gordon Beckham will have an opportunity to compete against his former White Sox teammates this weekend, but his return has given Emilio Bonifacio reason to have reservations about any future plans to play at Wrigley Field.
The Braves activated Beckham from the disabled list and designated Bonifacio for assignment before playing Thursday night's makeup game against the Cubs.
Beckham had been sidelined since suffering his second strained left hamstring on June 1. This same ailment had forced him to spend three weeks on the disabled list earlier this season.
Braves manager Brian Snitker did not wait to get Beckham back into action, positioning him at shortstop for Thursday night's game. Beckham batted .286 and compiled a .862 OPS in the 21 games that separated his stints on the DL. The versatile infielder went 5-for-8 while playing three rehab games with Class A Advanced Carolina this week.
"I just want to get him back in there and get him acclimated," Snitker said. "Our guys have played a lot of ball the past two or three weeks. There have been a lot of no days off and heat and extra innings. So it might be good to rest a guy or two."
With the Braves set to begin a three-game series against the White Sox at U.S. Cellular Field on Friday, this was a timely return for Beckham, who played the first 5 1/2 seasons of his career for Chicago's South Siders.
Coincidently, Bonifacio had come to Wrigley Field on April 30 with the understanding he was going to be placed on Atlanta's roster. However, he was sent back to Triple-A Gwinnett because the Braves overlooked a rule that prohibited him from being activated less than 30 days after he signed a Minor League deal with the same team that released him from a Major League contract.
Bonifacio finally joined Atlanta's roster in June, and he proceeded to hit .129 and compile a .206 on-base percentage over 36 plate appearances.