Watch: Rehabbing Freeman tips cap after making clean play at 3B
Freddie Freeman fields his first grounder at third perfectly to end the inning and tips his hat to the crowd #Braves pic.twitter.com/AFlrrX4mTh
— Kelsey Wingert (@KelsWingert) July 2, 2017
Seems like Freddie Freeman's getting used to this whole "playing third base" thing.
The Atlanta Braves star made his first in-game appearance at the hot corner since 2007 - his first professional season in the Gulf Coast League - on Saturday night at Charlotte's BB&T Park in his first rehab game with Triple-A Gwinnett, and everything appears to be going well so far. Freeman handled his first ground ball at the position like he'd been doing it all his life - and was rewarded with an ovation from the crowd, which led the 27-year-old to tip his cap in acknowledgement as he returned to the dugout.
A natural first baseman, Freeman - who's been sidelined for the last six weeks with a fractured left wrist - is being shifted to third by the Braves thanks to the red-hot play of Matt Adams, his replacement at first.
Freeman is aiming to return to the majors next weekend.