Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The Atlanta Braves' lead in the NL East has shrunk to just two games after consecutive losses in St. Louis.
- Injuries and underperformance have left the Braves scrambling for solutions at multiple positions, with key players failing to meet expectations.
- Fans are demanding major changes before the trade deadline to secure the division as the Phillies and Marlins close in.
After back-to-back losses in St. Louis, the Atlanta Braves' lead in the NL East has dwindled to two games. The Braves came out of the gate red-hot this season and built what felt like an insurmountable lead in the standings. Now, mired in a months-long slump, the Braves are on the cusp of losing their first place crown to a familiar foe from Philadelphia — with the surging, underdog Marlins only three games back, too.
The Braves are once again searching for answers amid a spate of injuries, including to superstar outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. Their pitching staff, once again, is operating well below full strength. And yet, the Atlanta's issues are not strictly injury-related. This is a team with several key players who just are not performing up to par. Fans will press Alex Anthopoulos and the front office to initiate majors changes as a result.
OF Mike Yastrzemski
Mike Yastrzemski arrived in Kansas City at the trade deadline a year ago and mashed, posting an .839 OPS and 132 OPS+ with nine home runs in 50 appearances for the Royals. He was especially potent against right-handed pitching, and felt like the perfect solution to what has long ailed this Braves outfield.
Unfortunately, Yastrzemski's swing is M.I.A. currently — and it has been all season. He has a .686 OPS and 91 OPS+, and while the 35-year-old has at least emerged somewhat from the horrendous slump in which he began the season, it's still difficult to trust him on a nightly basis. He's especially impotent against southpaws (.548 OPS), and those matchups have given the Braves fits all year.
The lack of outfield depth in Atlanta has kept Yastrzemski billed as an everyday player, especially with Acuña spending so much time on the IL, but one of the Braves' many trade deadline priorities needs to be finding an upgrade in the outfield. Yastrzemski is actually outperforming his metrics slightly and he's a below-average defender, which means the Braves are receiving precious little value.
SS Ha-seong Kim
The Braves inked Ha-seong Kim to a one-year, $20 million contract in free agency, only for him to begin the season on the IL and suffer more injury setbacks since. In his brief time on the field, Kim has found zero success at the plate. He has a .239 OPS and a -30 OPS+ (yes, negative) across 73 at-bats. His heralded, Gold Glove-caliber defense at shortstop — the main appeal for a Braves team long in search of a solution at the most demanding infield position — has not really manifested either. His -1.1 fWAR is by far the worst on the team and he only has 27 appearances under his belt.
It's safe to chalk the Kim trade and subsequent re-signing as a massive whiff for the Braves front office. The process behind the move was understandable, even celebrated in the moment. But Kim has not held up his end of the bargain.
Shortstop is once again a focus for Atlanta ahead of the deadline. Jim Jarvis, Atlanta's 25-year-old rookie, has stepped in and done a credible job in recent weeks, but the Braves need a more reliable solution. No matter how the proverbial cookie crumbles, it's clear that Kim was a misstep.
DH/1B Dominic Smith
Dominic Smith arrived in Atlanta with very few expectations, only to emerge as a surprise star early in the campaign. It looked as though the Braves found a diamond in the rough. Over the past couple months, however, Smith's production has cratered. He now grades out as a sub-replacement level hitter (.702 OPS and 94 OPS+) with minimal value added elsewhere.
Injuries have kept Smith locked in the DH spot, as Atlanta needs every functional right-handed bat it can get. However, he has a .490 OPS since the calendar flipped to June. Smith keeps strikeouts to a minimum, but his 35.2 percent hard-hit rate lands in MLB's 23rd percentile, per Baseball Savant. He has one home run over 31 appearances in the past month and a half.
Smith is borderline unplayable in the field, especially with almost every first base dedicated to Matt Olson. He's there to swing the bat and right now, he's doing so in a counterproductive way. The Braves probably need to bite the bullet on the idea of Smith as a late-career breakout.
3B Austin Riley
When Austin Riley put pen to paper on his 10-year, $212 million contract, it felt like a classic Braves underpay. No team is better about locking up its stars early and getting a discounted rate. Now, less than three years into his new deal and locked up at a $22 million AAV through 2033, Riley looks borderline unplayable.
With Ronald Acuña Jr. and Sean Murphy on the IL, Mauricio Dubón is currently the only right-handed bat in the Braves lineup with an over-.700 OPS. Riley, a two-time All-Star who put together three straight 33-plus home run seasons from 2021 to 2023, currently sits with nine home runs at the season's midpoint. He has a .619 OPS and 72 OPS+, with a 0.0 fWAR. That means he is a replacement-level third baseman, and even that feels a bit too kind.
Riley's contract will make it damn near impossible for Atlanta to actually move Riley at the deadline, but fans are starting to lose patience all the same. The decline has been evident for a couple years now, but Riley was still a functional hitter and a passable defender last season. Now, in addition to his profound struggles at the plate, Riley's defensive metrics (-4 outs above average) put him in the 12th percentile at third base. He's hurting the Braves across the board.
More MLB news and analysis:
Add us as a preferred source on Google