It has been a rather quiet offseason for the Atlanta Braves after a grueling, at times dispiriting 2024 campaign. The Braves just couldn't catch a break on the injury front. There's bad luck, then there's whatever cursed Atlanta last season. Pretty much everyone except Marcell Ozuna was either in a career-worst slump or hurt. Sometimes both.
There were positives. Chris Sale put together his first healthy season in a while and earned Cy Young honors, which were a long time coming for the eight-time All-Star. Reynaldo Lopez also emerged as a legitimate ace for a shorthanded Braves rotation, helping to offset the gaping void left by Spencer Strider's absence.
Both Sale and Lopez wore down as the season progressed, though, which left Atlanta even more compromised once the playoffs rolled around. One has to imagine the Braves are due for positive regression. It's almost scientifically impossible for this season to go worse. That said, just because Ronald Acuña is due back soon and Strider is reintegrating into the rotation, that does not excuse Alex Anthopoulos' stunning lack of aggression.
Atlanta let Max Fried and Charlie Morton walk without lining up viable replacements. Instead, the Braves will rely on internal growth in a season with immediate World Series aspirations. The Dodgers, Mets, Diamondbacks, and Cubs all stockpiled new talent and bolstered their rosters this winter. The Braves more or less stood pat, minus a few costly departures.
That strategy is already backfiring.
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Hurston Waldrep gets booted to Triple-A after a single spring training appearance
It's unclear how exactly the Braves plan to manage the back end of their rotation this season. Once Strider is back, Atlanta has a relatively stable four-man gauntlet (barring injuries). Strider, Sale, Lopez, and Spencer Schwellenbach will all command regular starts and produce accordingly. What about the fifth starter, though? And what if injuries strike?
Grant Holmes has been a successful swingman in the past, but the Braves shouldn't count on him as a full-time starter. Ian Anderson was stellar in the 2021 playoffs, but he's coming back from a two-year Tommy John absence. His first taste of spring training was... less than ideal. The Braves cannot count on a swift, uncomplicated return to form. Anderson will require time and patience.
In a perfect world, the Braves could count on the progression of top prospect Hurston Waldrep. That plainly is not the case, though. Waldrep, 22, was demoted to Triple-A after a single inning of spring training work for Atlanta. So much for that dream.
As Chase Irle of Sports Talk ATL elucidates, the Braves are maintaining the longview with Waldrep.
"However, while the Braves could find a role for Waldrep later in the season, whether it’s as a starter or reliever, fine-tuning his stuff and command in Gwinnett is best for his development," he writes. "Waldrep’s value is highest as a starting pitcher, and it’s far too early in his professional career to transform him into a full-time reliever, even if that’s a role he takes on for the Braves later in the year."
It's the right strategy, but it does prove how feeble this rotation is. Waldrep made two MLB starts for Atlanta last season, allowing nine hits, eight walks, and 13 earned runs across 7.0 innings. Not great, Bob. He only struck out three in that span. We should not panic this early in Waldrep's career, but he is clearly a year or two (or three, or four) away from consistent impact with the big-league squad.
So, the Braves are left picking through a whole lot of nothing. Bryce Elder has been brutal for the last year and a half. Is he Atlanta's best option? Can Anderson get up to speed in a month? Is this finally A.J. Smith-Shawver's time? The options are limited. Maybe Anthopoulos should check back in on the trade market.