Braves in improved spot after offseason additions
If August is referred to as “the dog days” of a baseball season, what do we call January?
Technically, Opening Day (yes, it has earned the right to be capitalized) is nearly three months away, but this is still a very important part of any Major League Baseball “season.”
For the Atlanta Braves and every other realistic contender — though how many would have put the Arizona Diamondbacks into this category a year ago? — it’s the building season.
The foundation of any World Series hopeful has already been built, and Atlanta’s is still better than the rest, and should be for years. Still, though the team sits atop most 2024 rankings, the great majority of Braves fans I know are pleased with the offseason, but still a bit uneasy.
Two postseason duds in a row will do that, especially when you see the Los Angeles Dodgers adding the world’s top player while also getting a pair of could-be aces for the pitching staff. The nemesis Philadelphia Phillies, as of now, are basically returning intact, even dealing the Braves another raspberry by re-signing pitcher Aaron Nola after Atlanta went after the righty hard in early free agency.
The uneasiness doesn’t come from a lack of activity. Heck, Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos has traded 14 players in a myriad of moves that both added a couple of big pieces and also kept the team from surpassing the dreaded third luxury tax threshold. Doing so comes with a No. 1 draft pick penalty, which is what the New York Mets, New York Yankees and San Diego Padres — three teams that didn’t make the playoffs in 2023 — can look forward to.
Agree or not, this offseason is about next October and trying to put a roster together that will not wilt under postseason pressure, whether because of mental or physical fatigue. Simply put, if this team doesn’t make the playoffs, then something really
bad has happened.
So it’s a good offseason, but is it enough? For now, it has to be. If it’s not, then let’s hope Anthopoulos can break the budget if necessary at the trade deadline. Not doing so this past season proved costly.
The recent addition — and extension — of pitcher Chris Sale is likely the end of building season for the Braves, and it’s a solid, if not earth-shattering move for a couple of reasons. The team needs power arms, and Sale has it with 2,189 strikeouts in 1,780 innings.
Yes, he’s not been healthy enough to have full confidence in the move, but if the idea is to have him as a key part of the October rotation, then the Atlanta coaching staff HAS to have a plan to limit innings. That goes for the entire starting staff, which now includes the 34-year-old Sale and 40-yearold Charlie Morton, who was not available for the National League Division Series against the Phillies after making 30 starts.
Here’s a thought. Why not go to a six-man rotation? It would cut five or six starts off Spencer Strider, Max Fried, Morton, Sale and whoever slots in afterward. The Braves have, by my count, at least eight other guys who could start, including Bryce Elder (31 starts in 2023), AJ Smith-Shawver, Ian Anderson, Dylan Dodd, Huascar Ynoa (remember him?), recent acquisition Reynaldo Lopez and hot prospect Hurston Waldrep.
Such a move would also help a bullpen that has been taxed by a rotation that rarely gets games past the sixth inning. In fact, Strider, Elder, Morton and Fried (limited to 14 starts) each averaged less than six innings per start last season.
Maybe more-rested starters can go deeper into games?
The same thought goes for the regular lineup. No one on this team needs to play more than 150 games. Yes, fans pay to see Ronald Acuña Jr. and Matt Olson and the boys, but at what cost? The three regulars who did not lose time to injury — Olson (162 games), Acuña (159) and Austin Riley (159) — were everyday fixtures, even with a double-digit division lead by July.
When healthy, the other regulars also rarely sat out. Did fatigue have anything to do with a lineup that hit .186 in four playoff games against a Phillies staff that had a 4.03 ERA in the regular season? Getting the reserves more atbats might also be beneficial in the playoffs (Atlanta bench guys were 0-for-7 against the Phils).
The team’s other big offseason move was the trade for outfielder Jarred Kelenic, who has to be an upgrade over the now-departed Eddie Rosario and could be the steal of the offseason if he can find some contact consistency.
Kelenic is also an emotional player (though injuring yourself in a fit isn’t quite productive — just ask Ynoa). Personally, I believe AA was attracted to Kelenic and Sale due to their personalities. For all the Braves’ obvious talent, the players are mostly laid back, especially the pitching staff.
Maybe, just maybe, Sale will be the guy who provides the answer the next time Acuña gets thrown at or Phillies star Bryce Harper trolls the Braves after homering.
Let’s hope we get an answer early. Until then, here’s something to lift your spirts: pitchers and catchers report in five weeks.