For the second year in a row, the Braves won over 100 regular season games and fell to the Phillies in the Divisional Round. There’s no questioning the talent this core possesses, but it’s become evident they need to make some tweaks to the roster if they want to get back to the World Series.
MLB.com’s Mark Bowman and David O’Brien of The Athletic relayed the little information AA was willing to part ways with as he plays everything close to the vest for competitive advantages.
“I’m going to be very guarded with our potential offseason plans,” Anthopoulos said. “One, we’re clearly not even there yet. We’re less than 24 hours into the offseason. But that’s fair. Those are real things that happened two years in a row. It’s something we’re definitely going to have to talk about.”
Losing in an eerily similar fashion in back-to-back division series against the same team has to be incredibly frustrating, and I don’t even think one particular facet of the team is to blame. The Braves just didn’t get it done.
“Josh Donaldson said it best back in 2015, when I was in Toronto,” Anthopoulos said. “He said, ‘It’s not the try league, it’s the get-it-done league.’”
Regardless of why the Braves didn’t get the job done, changes are on the horizon. Left field presents an opportunity to bring in another impact bat. Kevin Pillar is a free agent, and Eddie Rosario has a club option for $9 million. The bullpen could use bolstering too, but the starting rotation is at the forefront of everyone’s minds.
Kyle Wright is set to miss all of next season after undergoing shoulder surgery, and Charlie Morton might retire. There could be a massive need to add to the rotation this offseason, especially considering Max Fried and Morton’s respective injuries going into the postseason this year.
“I think all your points that you brought up about the ailments two years in a row going into the postseason with some things that have come up with the rotation, I think (are) extremely fair. I wouldn’t argue,” Anthopoulos on whether the Braves need to acquire a frontline starter. “Look, those are the facts. There’s no doubt about it, we had a great season, but there’s no doubt we were definitely banged up. In terms of how that would shape or influence our offseason, I think the same thing (as usual). I’m going to be very guarded with our potential offseason plans.”
The Braves are evaluating all of their options, but with such a short turnaround from the series loss to this interview, of course, AA doesn’t have the answers just yet. He’s got ideas, and I think Atlanta has a more active offseason than some are expecting.
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