Bounce Back Performances Have Gotten the Braves Back on Track
The National League East has been in shambles to start this season. The New York Mets have been a complete mess and the Philadelphia Phillies have shared the same sentiment. It’s been disappointment. Kind of like what the Atlanta Braves have been like over the last two seasons and much of 2025 due to being snakebitten with injuries. However, this season has been great for the Braves to start and it’s time to start believing in the Braves and buy into what they are doing.
Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images
Even if the Mets and Phillies were playing up to their true potential, the Braves are worth buying into. Because the start of the season is legitimate. They are the only team yet to lose a series this season. Remarkable. It shouldn’t shock anybody either because when you truly look at this roster on paper the talent is clearly there. They did push the right buttons this winter and did shore up their bullpen from a high leverage standpoint. Biggest thing for this Braves team is that they have guys performing well that were underperforming for the last two seasons and that truly is what is making a huge difference.
It’s all about the lineup for the Braves, which has been essentially the same while adding depth players such as Dom Smith and Mike Yastrzemski. Smith has had his moments this season, highlighted by a walk off grand slam in the beginning of the year shortly after his Mom passing away. Overall, Smith is slashing .349/.373/.571 with a .945 OPS. What made this Braves team so feared in the World Series winning season was their depth and ability for that next guy to come in and deliver. Smith has done that.
Diving deeper under the surface, you are seeing guys like Mauricio Dubón having moments and being a key piece. Dubón is hitting .283 with a .765 OPS, but also giving this team efficient defense. It’s an unsung hero for this team and someone dubbed as a key contributor this season. As great as these stories are and seeing these types of players play a key hand in the success for this team, again it’s the guys that you pegged to bounce back and they are.
Colin Hubbard for the AJC
Let’s start with Ozzie Albies, who needed this bounce back in the worst way possible. Albies dealt with a wrist fracture in 2024 and then dealt with a hamate bone fracture in his hand. As we know, that type of injury can have effects on your swing. This didn’t occur until September, but could’ve have lingered all year. He took a notable step back in 2025, hitting .240 with a .671 OPS. The hard hit rates have taken a dip the last two seasons, but he’s finally being the Albies we’ve grown to enjoy.
Albies is slashing .316/.355/.491 and with a .846 OPS. His ISO (isolated power) sits at .175, which is a 50 point difference from a season ago. For the first time in two seasons he has a wRC+ above 100. Massive. He is seeing fastballs better and able to crush offspeed and breaking pitches. He utilizes the entire diamond to his advantage and it has paid off enormously. Oh, and the defense is back.
Michael Harris II being back to his hitting ways is massive for this group. The defense in the outfield is elite and his presence out there is felt. However, it was missing the last two seasons. 2024 was not bad, but 2025 was a step back, as he hit .249 with a .648 OPS. Still, he’s been consistent by giving the team 15+ home runs each season and hitting a career best 20 last season. But the ISO was average and his wRC+ like Albies was below 100. Was this offense going to go nuclear like 2023? Nope. But this was a hard regression to the mean.
Harris II is hitting extremely well and is showcasing his power. His ISO sits at .237 (77 point increase), and the wRC+ is at a 154. His hard hit rate increased by 12.4% and with his increase in bat speed has seen polarizing exit velocities. It’s a great set of ingredients he’s working with to make an appetizing dish that is his output. The defense is still top tier and having this type of production again is huge for the lineup.
Matt Olson continues to get the job done and has been the definition of consistency paving the way for this offense. Drake Baldwin looks to be a legitimate hitting catcher and one of the best doing so. He is showing that there is so such thing as a sophomore slump and has been great for this club. The Braves have the most runs in baseball, third most home runs, top five in overall slash line, and this is without Ronald Acuña Jr. getting off to a hot start. He hasn’t been bad, but has been MVP dominant.
Photo by Matthew Grimes Jr./Atlanta Braves
Now the pitching side of things has been a bright spot and a position that had questions coming into this season. Losing Spencer Schwellenbach stings and this team is also without Spencer Strider, who is nearing a return. However, they’ve defied those losses and have been one of the best staffs in the sport. Overall, Atlanta has the third best rotation ERA (3.12) and combined it’s the best in baseball with their bullpen (3.13). It’s a staff that maybe doesn’t have the flashiest arms, but they get the job done.
Bryce Elder continues to defy everything and has a 1.95 ERA to a 3.13 FIP. Base traffic is minimal with him and he’s getting the outs. Chris Sale continues his resurgent career after injury riddled seasons in Boston, having a 2.31 ERA to a 3.93 FIP. Still an electric slider that does polarizing damage. Grant Holmes and Reynaldo Lopez have been able to hold the fort down and the bullpen has been dynamite.
Both Raisel Iglesias and Robert Suarez have been stellar at the back end of the pen. Only one earned combined between the two of them and they both are nightmares to face. High strikeout rates and lots of swing and miss ability. It makes them lethal and if they have the lead, good luck with that.
The Braves have a seven game cushion on the second place Marlins and they look to be running away with this division and with ease. The start to the season is great to see and people should be believing in what the Braves are doing. They’ve pushed the right buttons, got bounce back performances, and are back to being the Braves. Start believing.