The Atlanta Braves have won the NL East Crown for the last six seasons straight, but they have only won a World Series Championship once in that span and have failed to get out of the NLDS, four of the six years, so could this be the year they get back to the Fall Classic? With their starting lineup and rotation, it sure looks like it.
In 2023, the Braves won 104 games with an identical record both home and away (52-29). They won the division by 14 games and scored the most runs in baseball with 947. The Los Angeles Dodgers were second behind the Braves in runs scored and now with the addition of Shohei Ohtani, LA could battle the Braves to the best in the National League, as both clubs are gearing for a better 2024 finish.
The Braves will basically field the same line up from 2023, which was one of the most productive in history in the majors and with something to prove that the 2023 ending was just bad games at the wrong time and this year they are poised to finish the job.
The new addition to the lineup is Left Fielder Jarred Kelenic, who was the #1 pick for the Mets in the 2018 MLB June draft. Kelenic made his MLB debut with the Seattle Mariners in 2021 and after some growing pains for the first two MLB seasons, he had a decent year in 2023, as he batted .253, with 25 doubles, two triples, 11 home runs, while driving in 49 runners. On December 3, 2023, Kelenic was traded to the Braves and is expected to be in the starting lineup after an uneventful spring training.
(Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
As for the starting rotation, it will be led by Max Fried (8-1, 2.55 ERA in 14 starts in 2023), Spencer Strider (2023 strikeout king (281) and 20 game winner), two of the best pitchers in the game and the supporting staff will consist of Charlie Morton (14 game winner in 2023), and newcomer Chris Sale, who was traded to the Braves along with SS Vaughn Grissom and cash in December. If Sale can regain some of his dominance on the mound as he did in prior years, he will be a great addition to an already solid starting staff.
The added additions to the team, will make the Braves that much harder to beat, and even though it won’t be a walk in the park in the NL East, Atlanta should find themselves back in the thick of things for the 2024 postseason. But have they done enough to get past the first round and beyond, well we have a full season to play to figure that out. But Braves fans should like the product that will be on the field as Atlanta will be ready to defend their Division title and more.
