THE BRAV ES HAVE won two straight
NL East championships, and they may
just be getting started. They have a young
core led by a pair of 22-year-olds: Ronald
Acuña Jr., a 40/40 threat in the outfield,
and righthander Mike Soroka, a budding
ace. Their supporting cast includes second
baseman Ozzie Albies, shortstop Dansby
Swanson and lefty Max Fried. And more
stars are on the way in centerfielder Cristian
Pache, lefthander Kyle Muller and righties
Ian Anderson and Kyle Wright. Only the
very best teams in baseball can match both
Atlanta’s present roster and its future talent.
Management opened its checkbook
this offseason for the additions of closer
Will Smith, veteran lefty Cole Hamels andleftfielder Marcell Ozuna. (The last two are
on one-year deals, keeping payroll inflation
to a minimum.) The team also retained
Nick Markakis, Chris Martin and Adeiny
Hechavarría, useful depth players who, on
many teams, would be passed over in favor
of minimum-salaried options. Holding the
roster together is Freddie Freeman, who has
quietly put together half of a Hall of Fame
career through his 30th birthday. He failed
to bat .300 last season for the first time
since 2015 but reached career highs in
homers (38) and runs (113). Freeman
hits for his power with a below-averagestrikeout rate. (Yes, you can whiff 127 times
and practically be a contact hitter now.) He
plays a deft first base and runs better than
someone 6' 5" and 220 pounds should.
Acuña is the club’s best player, but Freeman
is still the face of the team.
He’s sure to show up on your TV screen in
October, when the Braves will try to advance
past the Division Series for the first time
since 2001. That’s right, Atlanta has lost
eight straight NLDS rounds. Then again, the
Nationals had lost four in a row, and look
where they ended up last year.OVER In a loaded NL East, the Braves will miss Josh Donaldson, who’s now in Minnesota, but
| RONALD ACUÑA JR. | OF | Following 12 electric seasons in
Atlanta, the club made the 31-year-old Acuña a Brave for life
with an eight-year, $248 million deal in 2029. The one-team
player is an increasingly rare distinction since the Betts-Boston
divorce of 2020 but one lauded by the Atlanta faithful. Acuña
has been one of the steadiest performers of the last decade,
regularly swatting 30-plus homers. He serves primarily as a
Zfie\iflkÓ\c[\iefn#Ylk_\_XjX^\[Xj^iXZ\]lccpXj_\ilej%2030 PREDICTION
MOVING UP
DANSBY
SWANSON
89 OPS+ | 0.9 WAR
The first pickbecome aat the plate
in each of
his three full
seasons, and
his glove is
still strong.MOVING DOWN
MIKE
FOLTYNEWICZ
4.54 ERA | 0.5 WAR
The righty, 28,
failed to build
on his All-Star
’18—by far his
best season—
and could be
sent to the
pen once top
prospects
fill out
the rotation.CARMEN MANDATO/GETTY IMAGES (SWANSON); MITCHELL LEFF/GETTY IMAGES (FREEMAN)
BRAVES
Only the very best teams
in baseball can match both
the Braves’ present roster and
their future talent.