As the Atlanta Braves begin the season 0-5, the Braves have been pretty terrible. However, their offense must take most of the blame. The Braves have scored one run in the last three games. The pitching hasn’t done great, however, the offense must up soon.
The Braves Could Collapse Without Offensive Help Soon
The Braves Strength Isn’t Their Rotation
Now, a team could start 0-5 and easily comeback. The Braves themselves did so in 2021. The New York Mets did so last season. However, the Braves rotation is looking… Shaky. With Reynaldo Lopez on the IL again, the Braves rotation has showed it’s weakness. With Chris Sale injury-prone and then having a harsh back of the rotation, it’s easy to see that the rotation not a strength for Atlanta. First, almost all of Atlanta’s ace’s are serious injury concerns. Then, already Grant Holmes and AJ Smith-Sawver have already showed that they can become a major problem for Atlanta.
With the loss of Max Fried and Charlie Morton, Atlanta’s rotation could actually become the worst in the NL East. No need to panic about the rotation, but the rotation has HAZARD written all over it.
Simply Put, The Offense Must Show
That being said, the offense needs to show up for Atlanta. The good thing is that it probably will sooner than later. However, the bad thing is nobody discussed one huge thing. The Braves offensive stars, and almost all of them, underperformed drastically in 2024. So are the chances that all of those players will suddenly return to stardom in 2025? Maybe high. However, if even a few of these players that underperformed badly this season, it could Atlanta heavily.
Overall, all the stars of the team have to do is perform 2/3’s of how they did in 2023. The one thing that can’t continue is the plummeting of the Braves. The Braves showed a good thing before 2024: 88 wins in 2021, 101 wins in 2022, 104 wins in 2023. Atlanta was getting better every year. However, suddenly Atlanta won 15 less games in 2024, or were 89-73. If Atlanta is even remotely mediocre, it could cost them everything, as it seems more and more teams are getting better around them in the NL. Without a good rotation, Atlanta NEEDS more offense.
A Collapse Doesn’t Exist Yet Though
Last season, the Mets were 22-33, horrifying and losing basically every series. However, suddenly they clicked and got to being 89-73. It is not a rare thing to comeback from being 0-5, which is clearly not nearly as bad as being 22-33. Of course, Atlanta also has been able to comeback from being negative before, as they did so in 2021 and 2022 to steal the division away from the Mets both times. However, the concern remains.
New York got way better with Juan Soto, not to mention their rotation is not nearly as bad as certain people make it seem. Atlanta, meanwhile, did little in the offseason. Even their biggest addition, Jurickson Profar, is suspended for cheating. Atlanta probably won’t collapse. However, starting 0-5 is never a good thing. Also, don’t forget about the Philadelphia Phillies, who are still a strong team.
So many games remain, many stars haven’t returned yet, and more. But Atlanta’s offense which was amazing in 2023 and mediocre in 2024, needs to get back in shape. Without a productive offense, the Braves are no where near the Phillies or Mets in the NL East. Sometimes, the best defense is offense. The offense must respond.
Main Image: © Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
