This was one of the weirder Braves seasons in recent memory.
Coming off their first missed postseason since 2017, there were plenty of concerns about how this team would bounce back with a new manager after Brian Snitker decided to hang it up. Those concerns were only exacerbated by injuries to Spencer Schwellenbach, Hurston Waldrep, and Spencer Strider during Spring Training.
Inside the clubhouse, however, there was never a sign of panic. The Braves claimed the NL East lead on April 10th and burst out to the best record in baseball through the first two months. Up until June, everything was clicking, but chinks in the armor eventually began to show.
Injuries continued to take their toll on the rotation, and then the bullpen lost one of its top guys in Robert Suarez, who didn’t make his return to the mound until last night. But surprisingly, it was the offense that was primarily responsible for the Braves’ lulls over the final four months.
Austin Riley never could quite find his footing — something he’s still trying to figure out in a hurry before postseason baseball begins next week. Ronald Acuña Jr. missed more than 50 games, Drake Baldwin missed a month, Sean Murphy missed damn near the entire season, and Ozzie Albies fell off a cliff following a hot start.
It wasn’t exactly a formula for an NL East title. Yet every time it felt like the wheels were about to come off, they’d pull it together and go on a run, keeping the Phillies at arm’s length the entire way before clinching the division with a week to play.
The Braves haven’t been an elite baseball team from a record or statistical standpoint for quite some time. On paper, their rotation should be one of the worst in the league, and basically everybody has already written off their chances come October — most didn’t even think they’d make it there. The fact that they are is a testament to the resolve of the entire group.
They never stopped finding ways to grind out wins, and when the dust settles, they’ll likely have 95 under their belt — the fourth-best record in Major League Baseball.
For that reason, ESPN gave Atlanta an A-grade for its regular season performance.
“More steady than dominant, the Braves built an early lead in the NL East but appeared vulnerable at times to the Phillies catching them — a lead that was as large as 10½ games on May 22 got as low as two games — but Atlanta beat Philadelphia four out of seven games in September to essentially wrap up the division,” David Schoenfield writes.
“Huge shoutout to Chris Sale, who carried a rotation that received just eight starts from Spencer Strider and none from Spencer Schwellenbach. Grant Holmes and Martin Perez also stepped up, while trade addition Tyler Mahle has been the best pickup of the deadline. Alongside Sale, the bullpen has been the team’s MVP, with the highest win probability added in the majors.”
The Braves’ ragtag bunch of arms rarely wavered the entire season. The bullpen was among the best in baseball from start to finish, featuring an incredible breakout campaign from rookie Didier Fuentes — possibly the most underrated reliever in the sport right now.
But not enough can be said about the likes of Grant Holmes, Martin Perez, and Bryce Elder. These were fringe roster guys who stepped up and are the only reason the Braves are thinking about October. Without them, it’s another long offseason of reviewing what went wrong.
Some grief can be thrown Alex Anthopoulos’ way for his lack of aggressiveness last winter and at the trade deadline. It’s fair to say this team has holes he could have addressed, but this regular season grade isn’t about him. It’s about the 26 guys in the clubhouse and the 20 more who made an appearance throughout the season. This roster had no business winning the division with the injuries taken into account, and they did so rather easily — a huge testament to Walt Weiss, who should receive strong consideration for NL Manager of the Year honors.
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(Photo by Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire)