B.J. Upton went 1-for-5 with his fifth home run of the year against the Pirates on Tuesday.

The homer was Upton's second in three games, and he's beginning to show signs of life since the calendar turned to June. The hit was his only of the night, and he's still batting just .154, but you've got to crawl before you can walk. These small signs of improvement mean the arrow might finally be pointing up for the gifted outfielder.

B.J. Upton ripped a solo homer in Sunday's win over the Nationals.

One day after getting two hits, including the game-winner in the 10th, Upton went deep in his first at-bat Sunday. He's still hitting just .156/.237/.269, but the Braves are hoping it's the beginning of a turnaround.

B.J. Upton singled in Jordan Schafer in the bottom of the 10th to give the Braves a 2-1 win over the Nationals on Saturday.

It was a broken bat liner off the end of the bat, but Upton will surely take it. He also had a single up the middle in the contest, giving him just his sixth multihit game of the season. Delivering the game-winner should ensure that he starts two days in a row tomorrow for the first time since May 21-22.

Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez indicated Friday that he has considered asking B.J. Upton to work out his struggles in the minors.

Upton has the right to decline a minor league assignment, so it's probably not even worth discussing. Still, the struggling outfielder was on the bench for the fourth time in the past five games Friday and may continue to lose playing time until he shows some signs of life.

B.J. Upton is not in the Braves' lineup Friday for the fifth time in the last seven games.

In the two games he has played, Upton is hitless in six at-bats, striking out five times. The outfielder's batting line has sunk to an embarrassing .146/.232/.247, and the Braves are giving him extra time off to work on his swing. He's sure to turn things around eventually, but for now expect Evan Gattis and Jordan Schafer to continue eating into his playing time.

B.J. Upton is back in Wednesday's lineup against the Blue Jays.

Upton sat out Monday and Tuesday in order to do some work on fixing his swing. The struggling outfielder is batting just .148/.236/.252 through 44 games this year, but he's much better than that. Justin Upton is also back in the lineup Wednesday.

B.J. Upton is out of the Braves' lineup again Tuesday.

The Braves are holding Upton out of the lineup while attempting to fix his swing. Fantasy owners are hoping the hard work pays dividends. Jordan Schafer will make another start in his place in center field.

B.J. Upton is not in Monday's lineup against the Blue Jays.

Upton is using the day to work on his swing. The struggling outfielder is batting just .148/.236/.252 through 44 games this season. Jordan Schafer is starting in his place in center field Monday.

B.J. Upton hit his first homer since April 23 off the Twins' Vance Worley on Wednesday.

It gave him just his second RBI in May. Facing Twins pitching got B.J. going just a little; he's 3-for-7 the last two days. It's just the second time in a month that he's had three hits in a series.

B.J. Upton (shoulder) went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts in his return to the Braves' lineup Wednesday.

Upton missed Tuesday's game with a mild bruise on his left shoulder. The 28-year-old outfielder is batting .145/.242/.244 with 49 strikeouts in 36 games this season.

B.J. Upton (shoulder) is not playing Tuesday but hopes to return to the lineup on Wednesday.

Upton left Monday's game after being hit on the left shoulder by a pitch. The shoulder isn't as anticipated, and the outfielder says he'll be available off the bench Tuesday before likely returning Wednesday.

B.J. Upton left Monday's game against the Diamondbacks with a left shoulder contusion.

Upton was hit by a Wade Miley pitch earlier in the game. He's considered day-to-day and should be fine. Jordan Schafer took Upton's spot in center field.

B.J. Upton is not in the lineup for Wednesday's matinee against the Reds.

The struggling outfielder will get a rest with right-hander Mike Leake on the hill for Cincinnati. Jordan Schafer will play center field and bat leadoff.

B.J. Upton struck out four times and walked once Monday versus the Reds.

So much for Upton's season-high two-game hitting streak. Well, in fairness, the two-game streak only matched his season high. He'll record a three-game streak soon. We're sure of it!

B.J. Upton went hitless in a fourth straight game Thursday, lowering his average to .134.

The Braves have yet to try to combat Upton's slump by taking him out of the lineup on occasion, but that would be more difficult for them to do anyway with Jason Heyward out. Perhaps if Upton still isn't hitting when Brian McCann returns, they'll go to Jordan Schafer in center and Evan Gattis in right on occasion.

B.J. Upton's early season struggles continued in a losing effort against the Pirates on Friday, as he went 0-for-3 with a pair of strikeouts.

It was a rough night for the entire Braves offense, as Jason Heyward and Andrelton Simmons accounted for the only two hits on the night. Upton is now hitting a highly disappointing .158/.250/.316 through his first 54 at-bats, including 18 strikeouts. While he'll never be an asset in the batting average category, he's far too talented to continue to struggle so badly.

B.J. Upton went 0-for-4 in Wednesday's loss, dropping his average to .140.

One of the incredible things about the Braves start is that they're 12-2 with three regulars hitting well under .200 (Upton, Jason Heyward at .128 and Dan Uggla at .163). Upton is still hitting better since moving into the leadoff spot than he was the first week of the season. He'll get it going soon enough.

B.J. Upton is not in Wednesday's lineup against the Marlins.

Upton went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts on Tuesday night and is hitting just .103 (3-for-29) so far this season, so a day off isn't a bad idea. Jordan Schafer will start in his place in center field on Wednesday while Andrelton Simmons will bat leadoff.

B.J. Upton went 0-for-3 on Thursday to finish the series against the Phillies 0-for-11 with seven strikeouts.

Upton even out-Ugglaed Uggla this week. Hopefully, it's just some new-team jitters for Upton. He had a really nice spring, hitting .347 with two homers and six doubles.

B.J. Upton hit a two-run homer off Doug Fister in the Braves' 6-1 victory over the Tigers on Sunday.

Manager Fredi Gonzalez talked about Upton as a fallback option in the leadoff spot in case Andrelton Simmons struggles, but with Simmons gone to play for The Netherlands in the WBC, Upton has remained in the middle of the order. It looks like he'll start off hitting fifth behind his brother and Freddie Freeman.