3 Braves club options to decline for 2024, 1 to pick up
The Atlanta Braves were the best team in baseball during the regular season, winning 104 games behind a historic offense and a strong (if oft-injured) pitching staff. Expectations were high for the No. 1 seed in the National League, but the Braves fell short for the second straight postseason.
Back-to-back road losses to the Philadelphia Phillies marked the end of Atlanta's season. For the second year in a row, the Braves lost to their division rival in the NLDS despite boasting a superior regular season record.
At the worst possible moment, the Braves' bats went ice-cold. Couple that with several nagging injuries in the pitching corps — Charlie Morton on the IL with a finger problem, Kyle Wright out through the 2024 season — and Atlanta was facing a steep uphill battle against the red-hot Phils.
In the wake of a disappointing season finale, one has to imagine the Braves will look to make changes this winter. That could start with declining, or accepting, club options for 2024. Several players are on the chopping block. Here's who the Braves will probably let go, and one player Atlanta should keep.
Braves should decline club option for Collin McHugh
In his second season with the Braves, 36-year-old Collin McHugh struggled mightily. He posted a 4.30 ERA, his worst since 2016, and saw his WHIP jump from 0.938 last season to 1.568 in 2023. He only struck out 7.2 batters per nine innings, compared to 3.4 walks.
The Braves' bullpen was a source of weakness at various points during the season, in part due to McHugh. Atlanta figures to hunt for quality rotation arms during the offseason. There is a need for quality righties, but McHugh simply wasn't up to snuff — especially not relative to his $6 million club option.
Alex Anthopoulos and the front office should look to use that money on a younger, more productive bullpen option or reinforcements in the lineup. McHugh could latch on with another team or even re-sign for less money, as he was a reliable weapon in 2022, but the Braves simply have no reason to pay top dollar for an aging, inconsistent reliever.