3 Atlanta Braves who won’t be on the roster next season regardless of playoff push

2024 couldn't have been more of a nightmare for the Atlanta Braves. They suffered a few potentially career-altering injuries to their two biggest stars. Ronald Acuña Jr. suffered a torn ACL and underwent surgery on it. Spencer Strider suffered a torn UCL and underwent surgery on it.

Their rivals, the Philadelphia Phillies, have had one of their best season's since the turn of the century, securing the NL East over the Braves for the first time in years. It's obvious that Atlanta is going to have a ton of work to do this offseason, but it will start with three players that will absolutely not be back, no matter if the Braves make the postseason or not.

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3. UTL Whit Merrifield

Whit Merrifield began the season with the Phillies, but as Philadelphia pushed for the postseason and a division title, they decided they didn't need Merrifield's services anymore. And who can blame them? The utility man slashed .199/.277/.295 with 8 extra base hits in nearly 200 at-bats while in a Phillies uniform.

Atlanta swooped in and picked him up to help their postseason push this year. Merrifield is slashing much better in Atlanta, holding a slash line of .243/.359/.342 so far. He has a team option of $8 million on his contract for next season.

While he's been useful for the Braves this year, he won't be worth $8 million next year. The Braves would likely replace him with a bigger and better name in the free agency market. Infielder Nacho Alvarez Jr. is expected to be in the big leagues for good starting in 2025.

Again, nothing against Merrifield and his production since being picked up by the Braves. But he's an aging veteran who offers a below-league-average OPS and a much lower ceiling than Alvarez or the top free agents.

Atlanta won't return to glory if they roster a ton of below-average hitters, so Merrifield will be getting the ax unless he ends up on a minor-league deal.

2. RHP Charlie Morton

The Atlanta Braves pitching staff is somehow loaded with talent but also extremely shallow at the same time. They have about a dozen guys that will be fighting for the five spots in the starting rotation once Spencer Strider returns. The scary part about this is that about eight of these guys are completely unproven prospects.

Spencer Schwellenbach, Hurston Waldrep and AJ Smith-Shawver headline these top prospects. Former All-Star Bryce Edler is still very talented but has fallen off horribly this year. Max Fried will be the team's biggest priority once the season ends. Then there's returners like Reynaldo Lopez and Chris Sale who are penciled in as the one and two in the rotation next season.

Schwellenbach will absolutely be back, as will Strider eventually. Atlanta could also look to add a free agent pitcher in the offseason.

All of this is saying that the 40-year-old, Charlie Morton, likely won't receive another contract from Atlanta after his expires at the end of this season. There's just too much young talent that's going to play a huge piece of the Braves' future that needs to be in the big leagues. Morton has been solid in Atlanta, but his time is coming to an end with the Braves.

1. OF Adam Duvall

Out of everybody on the Braves roster, Adam Duvall is going to be one of the tougher players for the team to let go, from a personal standpoint.

Duvall has played more of his career with the Braves than any other team, besides the Cincinnati Reds, where he spent four seasons and played 439 games. The outfielder has won a Gold Glove and a World Series ring while with the Braves. He's been an integral piece for the Braves for the last few years, including being a big part of the 2021 World Series. Duvall is loved by his teammates and coaching staff.

But from a business standpoint, with the front office looking to build the best possible team, Duvall might be the easiest player to let go of on the entire roster.

Duvall sits on an expiring contract, which makes him a candidate to not return already. Besides that, he's slashing a horrendous .184/.244/.328 in 100 games this season. The outfielder is worth a WAR well into the negatives and he's honestly just hurting the Braves whenever he's in the lineup.

Baseball is a business, at the end of the day, and the front office has to do whatever is best for business. This offseason, the best thing for business will be letting Adam Duvall walk in free agency.