If you are an Atlanta Braves fan, the end of the 2025 season likely left you with a weird mix of frustration and optimism. The team didn’t make the postseason for the first time in a long time, but Matt Olson was one guy that was absolutely hammering the ball at the end of the season.
After a frustrating, streaky 2024 and a 2025 season where the team struggled to find its rhythm, Olson finished 2025 on an absolute heater, batting around .300 with an 1.008 OPS in September. Now, looking ahead to 2026, there is every reason to believe the soon-to-be 32-year-old first baseman isn’t just going to be good, he’s going to have a massive, elite-level season. Here are three reasons why Olson is primed to tear it up in 2026
Why Matt Olson is Set for a Massive 2026 Season
1. The Iron Man is in His Prime
First off, consistency is everything in baseball, and Olson is arguably the most consistent player in the game right now. Since arriving in Atlanta in 2022, he has not missed a single game. Think about that, in a sport where guys get hamstrings tweaked or need days off constantly, Olson has played 162 games in each of the last four seasons. He is a workhorse. In 2026, he will be 32 as previously mentioned, which is still the prime hitting window for a guy with his strength and swing mechanics.
He’s not just showing up, he’s producing while he’s there. Even in his down years, he’s putting up 30-homer, 100-RBI potential. When you take that level of durability and combine it with a veteran who knows his swing better than anyone, you get a guy who is going to produce massive cumulative numbers over 162 games.
2. His Underlying Metrics Are Still Elite
It’s easy to get caught up in the batting average, but if you look at the advanced stats, Olson never really fell off a cliff. Even when he was struggling in early 2025, his exit velocity and hard-hit rates were still among the best in the league.
In 2025, Olson was in the 95th percentile for hard-hit percentage and 89th in barrel percentage. That means when he hits the ball, he hits it harder than just about everyone else in Major League Baseball. He also finished 2025 with his second-best exit velocity ever.
The issue in 2024/2025 was mostly about launch angle, too many groundballs and not enough fly balls. However, as he showed in that scorching September last season, when he adjusts his swing path to elevated the ball, he is almost impossible to stop. If he carries that high-contact, high-velocity approach from the end of 2025 into 2026, we could be looking at another 40-plus homer, 120-plus RBI season.
3. A Fully Loaded Lineup Around Him
Let’s be honest, in 2025, the Braves offense felt…off to say the least. Injuries and inconsistency played a major role in the team missing the playoffs. However, the expectation for 2026 is that a fully healthy Ronald Acuna Jr. will be back at the top of the lineup, along with a healthy Austin Riley and Ozzie Albies.Â
Olson is the top power-hitter on the team, but he’s also a beneficiary of that top-tier lineup. When those guys are on base, pitchers cannot pitch around Olson. He’s going to get strikes, and he’s going to have plenty of RBI opportunities.
His defense has returned to elite levels, with some of the best defensive runs saved numbers among first baseman in 2024 and 2025. Having that stability on both sides of the ball means he is always going to be on the field, building value and producing in the middle of a lineup that is designed to score runs in bunches.
Final Thoughts
Olson is too good, too durable, and too talented for the past two seasons to be the new norm. The 2023 54-homer version might be hard to replicate, but a 35-homer, .270 average, 110-RBI version is absolutely on the table. He is locked in, in his prime, and playing for a hungry team. Expect a massive 2026 from the Braves’ first baseman.
Main Image: Â Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images
