Just a couple of days ago, the Atlanta Braves seemed to be riding high, having just snatched home-field advantage from the Los Angeles Dodgers and heading back to Truist Park with a chance to close things out — and Chris Sale on the mound to start Game 3. Now, though, the Braves are once again leaving October early, with two consecutive losses sending them packing in the NLDS for the third time in five years since winning the 2021 World Series.
Which means that Atlanta is now embarking on a long, cold offseason full of some uncomfortable questions. Is this offensive core, which fell flat yet again in the postseason, good enough to go all the way? Can Alex Anthopoulos finally bring some stability to this starting rotation? And just how much money will he have to work with?
After another playoff failure, next year's Braves team will almost certainly look a whole lot different than in 2026. But who's on the chopping block? Here are our best guesses.
Ha-Seong Kim, SS
To put things in perspective on how bad Kim was this year, consider that he finished with a .359 OPS, nearly 400 points below the league-average .718 mark, over 159 plate appearances. The fact that he even made the playoff roster speaks volumes about Atlanta’s lack of infield depth down the stretch.
Kim earned $20 million on a one-year deal, and we’d be shocked if he came anywhere near an eight-figure salary next season. He turns 31 on Oct. 17 and profiles as a backup shortstop worthy of a non-roster invite. Change our minds and convince us that the veteran infielder still has something worthwhile left in the tank.
Martín Pérez, LHP
Pérez quietly enjoyed a resurgent 2026, finishing with the second-best ERA (3.04) and bWAR (2.9) in a steady 15-year career. He missed the Wild Card Round with a lower back problem, which led to sparingly used left-handed reliever Ray Kerr starting Game 3.
Pérez played on a one-year, $3.5 million contract, and he definitely has a case to earn twice as much in his age-36 season. A reunion with the Braves makes sense, and there's no indication the Braves want to move on from him. But for the sake of this list, we envision management pursuing someone younger and potentially cheaper.
Sean Murphy, C
Unlike the others on this list, Murphy is actually under contract for next year. In fact, he has two guaranteed seasons — both at $15 million — and a $15 million team option, but his contract lacks a no-trade clause.
There is no reason to pay a backup catcher $15 million, especially not one who has hit .194 with a .656 OPS since the start of 2024. Murphy can’t stay healthy, either, and hasn’t played more than 94 games over that span. The Braves committed to Drake Baldwin as their franchise catcher, and plenty of cheaper options will be available on the open market.
Tyler Mahle, RHP
Mahle boosted his free-agent stock at the perfect time, posting a 1.99 ERA over 54.1 innings after a deadline trade with the Giants. What stands out most is that Mahle walked only 4.3 percent of opposing hitters, well below his lifetime 8.3 percent rate. In fact, it was nearly five full points lower than his 9.2 percent walk rate in San Francisco.
Of all the players here, we believe Mahle is easily the one most worth keeping. But would the Braves pony up whatever he demands going into his age-32 season?
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