The Atlanta Braves currently hold a record of 96-53, the best in MLB. This past weekend's series, however, did not go as planned against an NL East rival.
After getting swept by the Miami Marlins, this club is starting to show warning signs for this upcoming postseason. With the best record in baseball, they are a franchise with hopes of capturing its second World Series win in the last three years.
However, these three Braves warning signs from the sweep at the hands of the Marlins are concerning enough to make some fans question their ability to contend.
Braves warning sign from Marlins sweep, No. 3: Pitching collapse
In the first game of the three-part series, Bryce Elder gave up four earned runs in five innings while yielding nine hits. They replaced him with Pierce Johnson, who pitched 1.2 innings, giving up a hit and a walk before getting replaced by Brad Hand, who gave up three hits and a walk, combining for four earned runs. Joe Jimenez closed up the game, recording two strikeouts.
In the second game, the Braves went on to give up 11 runs to the Marlins. Jared Shuster started this game but struggled, giving up six hits, two of which were home runs, and two walks, combining for five runs, four of which were earned. Jackson Stephens replaced Shuster and threw three shutout innings, giving up four hits and two walks. He was replaced by A.J. Minter, who threw a shutout inning with a walk and three strikeouts.
Kirby Yates was put in to keep the game tied but collapsed. He pitched two-thirds of an inning while giving up two hits and two walks, including giving up a home run to Jake Burger, combining for four earned runs. After Michael Tonkin came into the game, he gave up a walk and then a grand slam to Jazz Chisholm Jr.
Charlie Morton was the starting pitcher for the third game of the series but completely collapsed, giving up six earned runs on six hits and five walks in just 4.2 innings. Dereck Rodríguez came in and did much worse than Morton, pitching just two innings and giving up eight earned runs on seven hits and three walks. They knew they couldn't come back and had infielder Nicky Lopez finish up the game.
In the series, the Braves had 12 unique pitchers who combined for 24 total innings pitched. In those 24 innings, they gave up 43 hits while also walking 19 hitters. They combined for 24 strikeouts while giving up 35 earned runs, along with one unearned run. If they want to compete in the playoffs, they need to figure things out soon with their pitching, because these results will lead to an early exit.
Braves warning sign from Marlins sweep, No. 2: Lineup depth struggling
Part of the Braves' struggles in the series were evidenced by the depth of the lineup struggling. While Atlanta has superstars at the top of the order -- even without Acuña -- in Ozzie Albies, Austin Riley, and Matt Olson, they have other players like Kevin Pillar, Luke Williams, and Forrest Wall who just don't belong in the lineup.
The problem with the Braves in this series is that, in 107 at-bats, they only walked six times, two in each game. They also combined for 29 hits. This means in the three-game series, they had 35 runners on base, and in that series, they left 24 of them on base, a 68.57 percent left-on-base rate.
The lineup changed multiple times during this series, and each game they got worse and worse, scoring six, then five, and finishing with two.
Make no mistake, the Braves have had no long-term issue producing runs. However, squandering opportunities as they did against the Marlins is a troubling trend. Moreover, with a young pitching staff that will force Atlanta to rely on somewhat inexperienced postseason arms, they need the lineup to operate at full force. If not, it could be an ugly scene for the Braves.
Braves warning sign from Marlins sweep, No. 1: Ronald Acuña Jr. injury
In the first game of the three-part series, Ronald Acuña Jr. went down with an injury. When Acuña hasn't played in 2023, the Braves hold a record of 0-2. The Acuña effect is what has been helping been instrumental in the club's success this season. He holds a wRC+ of 169, which is the highest mark of his career, meaning he helps the Braves create 69 percent more runs than the average player would.
Acuña has an ability that hasn't been seen in a long time, playing in 147 games and hitting 37 home runs while knocking in 98 RBIs. His X-factor has been following the Rickey Henderson playbook of stealing bases to create runs, with a league-leading 66 steals. He has also been able to walk quite a lot in 2023 while limiting the strikeout with both 78 walks and strikeouts on the season.
However, Acuña doesn't just bring his skills to each game, he also brings his enthusiasm and ability to make the whole team have fun. When people are having fun, they are more productive, and this season the Braves have been having a lot of fun. After all, winning 96 games is a good time.
If Ronald Acuña Jr. isn't healthy for the postseason, they probably won't make such a giant run that most people expect them to. With their positioning in the standings, the Braves should be doing everything possible to ensure that Acuña is at 100% when the playoffs begin.
