After joining the club, McLouth played 84 games for the Braves in 2009. His performance for the Braves consisted of a .257 batting average, 11 home runs, and 36 runs batted in. The 2010 season proved to be one of the worst seasons offensively for McLouth. One highlight occurred on June 5, when McLouth collected his 500th Major League hit. McLouth suffered a toe injury and missed a game on June 7 after colliding with the outfield wall at Dodger Stadium. Four days later, he was placed on the disabled list after reporting concussion-like symptoms as a result of a collision with right fielder Jason Heyward. After returning from the injury in July, McLouth faced a horrible slump that warranted him being demoted to the Gwinnett Braves, the Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. Showing improvement, McLouth was recalled to the Majors on August 31. In his first twelve games after returning, McLouth hit for a .367 batting average, a drastic improvement over the rest of the season. As a result, he made a short-term return to the starting lineup. Nearer the end of the season, McLouth began to struggle again. Despite the rocky season, McLouth made the Braves playoff roster, and was projected to start in left field against the San Francisco Giants in the National League Division Series. However, Matt Diaz started game one in his place.