3 Braves most to blame after epic collapse vs. Rockies starts new losing streak

The fall of the 2024 Atlanta Braves is something that historians will look back on and study in the same way that we study the Great Pyramids and the dinosaurs.

Well, maybe not exactly, but their fall from grace has truly been an incredibly bad run to watch, depending on which side of the fence you're on.

The fall began with the two huge injuries to Ronald Acuña Jr. and Spencer Strider. Injuries to almost their entire roster including current ones to Reynaldo Lopez, Ozzie Albies and Michael Harris II have held them back.

Throw in a few major down seasons from some of their top expected performers and you may begin to wonder how this team was even in a playoff race in the first place.

That's an easy answer though. Lopez, Chris Sale, Marcell Ozuna and Austin Riley have all been great. Just not great enough to hold them in the postseason race the way they would like to.

August has gotten off to a rocky start which is led by Sunday's disastrous seven-run collapse to the last place Colorado Rockies.

Somebody has to take the blame for such a terrible two week stretch following the trade deadline. Three Braves stick out as the ones that should take the most heat for this utterly embarrassing collapse.

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3. RHP Bryce Elder

When a team goes on a big losing skid, it's hard to blame one starting pitcher. In order to lose, let's say, five games in a row, each pitcher in the rotation is involved in the streak. But for the Braves, they have been severely let down by their second-year starter, Bryce Elder.

Elder was named an All-Star last year, and many expected him to take a huge leap this season. Well, the right-hander has taken a huge leap... it was just in the wrong direction.

He's simply no longer an MLB-caliber arm and until he makes some major changes, he won't fit in the Atlanta rotation. The Braves, when healthy, are loaded with pitching talent. They will return multiple names next year and Elder may not find a spot back on the roster if they can stay healthy.

His season has been capped off by a pretty bad run over his last three starts. In those three starts, he's 1-2 with 14 earned runs in 15 innings, good for an ERA approaching 9.00. His production this year has been an incredible letdown for the Braves fans who were reliant that he takes on a bigger role following Stirder's elbow surgery.

2. OF Adam Duvall

The Braves lineup, as a whole, has been bad this year in comparison to recent years. When looking at their healthy starting nine, they have five guys with an OPS+ above league average. If you now eliminate Acuña, that number drops to four.

One thing that Atlanta has looked to do to combat these injuries is to platoon their outfield. This includes starting Adam Duvall against left-handed pitchers every day and right-handed pitchers whenever needed.

But while Duvall has crushed lefties for the most part, he's been horrible against righties.

His struggles have continued into August as the Braves outfielder is 1-for-14 to start with month with an OPS near .200. His season-long OPS sits around .560, as low as it's been all year.

Atlanta is relying on Duvall to be competitive at the plate and he's just taking the team in the wrong direction when they trust him with the bat. His WAR is well into the negatives and given his platoon splits, there's really no scenario where the Braves should let him hit against a righty.

He's definitely partly to blame for this collapse of a second half.

1. GM Alex Anthopoulos

Yes, I understand that the Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos isn't a player and he's not the reason they're giving up seven runs in an inning to the Rockies. He's not out on the field pitching and hitting for Atlanta. But he is the main source of who is on the field for Atlanta. And the team that he's put out after the trade deadline is an utter disgrace to the Braves fans who believed in this team.

I understand that they have been smashed with injuries as much, if not more, than any team in the league, but Anthopoulos had an opportunity to pursue players at the trade deadline and, for the most part, he tucked his tail and watched other teams land them.

It would have been ridiculous to ask the Braves to go all out on rentals like Jack Flaherty or Tanner Scott. But there were still plenty of controllable players like Jazz Chisholm Jr., that would have fit very well in Atlanta. Watching Chisholm and a few other stars that were dealt, excel in their new uniforms is just pouring salt in the wounds of Braves fans.

The team that's currently being sent out to play every day for the Braves isn't a postseason-caliber team and that comes back on the general manager.