Three Braves Who Could Save Their Season

We’ve officially reached “crunch time” as the 2024 MLB Postseason inches closer. As of right now, the Phillies, Brewers and Guardians have clinched the top spot in their respective divisions.

Other clubs that have clinched a playoff spot but not yet their divisions include the Yankees, Astros, Orioles, Padres and Dodgers. That means the primary focus throughout this next week or so is going to be on a few division races and a whole lot of Wild Card battles.

There are a ton of teams in the thick of things as the regular season enters its final week. In the American League, the Tigers, Royals, Twins and Mariners all have a shot at making the postseason, but none have secured a spot yet.

In the National League, it’s the Mets, Diamondbacks and Atlanta Braves all fighting for the chance to play meaningful October baseball. The first two teams are in possession of a Wild Card spot, with the Braves being the only team on the outside looking in that still has a chance.

What a wild year it has been for these Braves. The club is currently just a half-game out of a playoff spot with five games to go and a hurricane threatening any scheduled matchups at home. It’s been hectic down there, to say the least.

How Did the Braves Get Here?

The Braves have overcome a ton of adversity this year to even get to where they are now. Entering the season, they were the heavy favorites to win the NL East for the seventh straight year. Instead, the Phillies swiped the division title and the Braves are left trying to squeak in via a Wild Card spot.

Each of the following position players have missed time on the injured list, some with longer stints than others:

• Austin Riley

• Ronald Acuna Jr.

• Sean Murphy

• Ozzie Albies

• Michael Harris II

Easily the most consistent hitter on this team has been the controversial Marcell Ozuna, who’s having one of the best offensive seasons of his career. Otherwise, the Braves have had to dig deep for depth, including giving playing time to the likes of Whit Merrifield, Gio Urshela, Eli White, Cavan Biggio and Ramon Laureano.

On the pitching side of things, Reynaldo Lopez, Spencer Strider, Bryce Elder and AJ Minter have all missed time on the shelf, too. Chris Sale’s resurgence has been a great storyline to follow, and he’s going to be heavily relied upon to remain consistent through the end of the regular season and, hopefully, into the playoffs.

Let’s take a closer look at the Braves’ current roster and determine which three players most need to step up down the stretch if the club hopes to make it into the playoffs.

3 Braves That Need to Step Up For Them to Make the Playoffs

Max Fried

On Tuesday night, it was rookie Spencer Schwellenbach taking the mound for the Braves against the Mets, whom they are chasing in the standings. He went out and threw one of the best games of his young career; going seven innings of one-run ball with four strikeouts.

On Thursday, Max Fried is going to get his shot at taking down the Metropolitans.

Fried, 30, is a pending free agent and is undoubtedly looking to end his tenure on the Braves (assuming he isn’t re-signed) on a high note. This season, the left-hander made his second All-Star Game and has been every bit the (co)ace of this staff. He’s currently sporting a 3.42 ERA, 3.41 FIP and 121 ERA+ through 28 starts and 165.2 innings.

The eight-year veteran will be one of the last lines of defense for the Braves come his start on Thursday. He’s going to need to hope that Sale takes care of business on Wednesday if his own start on Thursday will even be a difference-maker.

Matt Olson

It’s been a weird year for Olson, who appears to be on his way to his third straight season of 162 games played. The lumbering first baseman struggled in the months of March/April, June and July before heating up in August and bursting into flames (in a good way) in the month of September.

Olson, 30, has found his power stroke, hitting a combined 12 home runs over his last 50 games in the last two months. He had a .911 OPS in August and currently sits at 1.045 in the month of September. He’s walking (18) so much more than he’s striking out (11) and is finding his way on base in a multitude of ways, which is nice to see from a player who relies heavily on his power stroke.

Since Sept. 1, Olson is tied for second in the majors in RBI (21), and OBP (.462) while also sitting third in BB% (19.8), sixth in wRC+ (186), tied for 11th in fWAR (1.1), 11th in SLG (.583) and 12th in AVG (.333). Through and through, he’s finally turned into one of the game’s best hitters when its mattered the most.

Getting Olson to continue his hot streak and do his thing against the Mets (and later this week, the Royals) is going to be of the utmost importance. Without Riley, whose season officially ended on Tuesday and Acuna, who won’t be returning this year, it’s going to be up to Olson to lead the charge on offense.

Chris Sale

Sandwiched in between Schwellenbach and Fried in this three-game set against the Mets will be Sale, who’s the likely NL Cy Young Award winner. The quirky southpaw has been utterly dominant all year long and is still showing no signs of slowing down.

His final start of the regular season will come on Wednesday, and Braves fans are overjoyed at the fact that his outing will come after a win by Schwellenbach the night before.

On the season, Sale has put together the best year of his career, which is a wild thing to say after how hard he has fallen off in recent seasons (mostly due to a slew of injuries).

The 35-year-old is currently in the top spot amongst qualifying starters in K/9 (11.40), HR/9 (0.46), ERA (2.38), FIP (2.08) and fWAR (6.4). He’s not only been the best starter in the NL, but he’s been the best in all of baseball.

When Sale takes the mound against the Mets, he’ll be facing off against a team he’s only made one other start against this year. In that outing, he went 7.1 innings, allowing two earned runs on as many hits while striking out nine and walking one.

How Can the Braves Make the Postseason?

It’s simple: they need to beat up on the Mets during their series against each other. Atlanta is 6-4 over their last 10 games and will be without any hope if they can’t swiftly take care of business against their division rivals.

With such a small gap separating the two teams, this thing is going to come down to the wire. Obviously, winning out will go a long way for the Braves, but even going two-out-of-three against the Mets will be enough to flip-flop them in the Wild Card standings. So far, so good in that department.

As of right now, the hope needs to be that the Braves take at least two from the Mets before their final series of the regular season against the ailing Royals. Lately, the Royals have been stuck in a freefall in the standings (3-7 in their last 10), so if that continues over the next few days, the Braves have a prime opportunity to walk right into the playoffs as long as they’re still firmly in the hunt come Friday.