標籤: Analyzing

The Atlanta Braves have been the best team in baseball, and this is nowhere near it. The club has started 25-11 with an 8 1/2 game lead in second place. There have been speculations year after year that the Braves were finally due for a breakout, although they have never lived up to those expectations thus far.

a miraculous championship moment

Atlanta had won the World Series just five years earlier. You wouldn’t think it given how the club has played over the past few years, but this team has performed wonders in 2021. The Braves won only 88 games in the regular season, but it was enough to win a middling National League East.

Ronald Acuña Jr. posted his best season since his 2018 Rookie of the Year campaign with a .283/.394/.596 slash line and 24 home runs. Freddie Freeman batted .300 with 31 longballs on the year. Even Austin Riley threw 33 balls out of the yard. he was the one steep Crew. The fact that they only won 88 games is ridiculous in itself.

Atlanta bested the Milwaukee Brewers in the NLDS (3-1) before defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers (4-2) to clinch a spot in the World Series against the Houston Astros. It was a ridiculously good Astros club. Houston won 95 games to claim the top spot in the American League West. One of the highlights of that club was their brilliant opening innings. Composed of Luis Garcia, Zack Greinke, Lance McCullers Jr., Jose Urquidi and Framber Valdez, watching the Braves defeat them in six games was a beautiful thing.

With leadoff homers from Jorge Soler (World Series MVP) and Eddie Rosario (NLCS MVP) in the postseason, the Braves battled their way to a World Series championship. they are The club proves that getting hot at the right time is what matters most in the race to the postseason.

That moment passes, each year since then is becoming less

Despite making the postseason three consecutive years after 2021, the Braves could not make it past the NLDS. Atlanta won over 100 games in 2022 and 2023 but disappointed in the postseason, losing to the Philadelphia Phillies both times. They won only 89 games in 2024 but still managed to make the playoffs. Atlanta was eventually joined in the NL wild card by the San Diego Padres.

But, in 2025, the Braves missed the postseason altogether. They finished fourth in the NL East with only 76 wins. It was a very poor season for an Atlanta team with high aspirations and expectations.

Much of this was due to injuries and absences from the planned roster. Jurickson Profar given 80-game suspension for PED use. Acuña was sidelined with hamstring and Achilles injuries. Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Showers and Hurston Waldrep all missed significant time, forcing Atlanta to piece together its starting rotation.

But, other than that, the offense struggled mightily. Despite four players having over 20 homers (Matt Olson, Acuna, Marcell Ozuna, and Michael Harris), they failed to actually win baseball games due to their poor starting rotation.

Heading into 2026, the problem for Atlanta was that they didn’t make a single decisive move this offseason to fix it. Their only real addition was to bring in former Padres closer Robert Suarez as Raisel Iglesias’ setup man. This solves most of the Braves’ bullpen problems, plus their numerous injuries haven’t been a major issue so far.

What’s more, starting left fielder Profar is now serving a full season suspension after once again testing positive for PEDs. Adding insult to injury (literally), shortstop Ha-seong Kim’s preseason injury dashed Atlanta’s 2026 offensive hopes.

Surpasses expectations and remains on top position

The Braves are on track to win 112 games. If they are able to accomplish this, it will be the most games won by Atlanta in franchise history. This is largely due to the all-round effort of the club.

Pitching finally looks as effective as the Bills

In MLB, the Braves’ pitching staff ranked second in opponent batting average (.216), third in ERA (3.25) and fourth in WHIP (1.16) and runs allowed (129). The only rotation in baseball that has been better is the Dodgers’. Chris Sale’s return to form has been a wonderful development for the club (2.14 ERA, 42.0 IP). Reynaldo Lopez has pitched well (though not incredibly) with a 3.28 ERA and 1.34 WHIP. But the real story is the success of Bryce Elder. The righty leads the club with a 1.88 ERA in his first seven starts.

Yes, it hurts to have Spencer Schwellenbach gone for most of the season. But Spencer Strider is back (though he had a rough start after giving up three runs in as many innings (3.1 IP). This has been the rotation, and it looks like it will continue to be lethal.

a crime that won’t go away

The craziest part? The rotation isn’t even the best part of Atlanta’s season. It is a crime. The Braves rank first in every major category except on-base percentage with a .275/.341/.468 slash line and .809 OPS. He is second in MLB in home runs with 54. It’s hard to argue with numbers like that.

That offense has been fueled by incredible performance after incredible performance. A resurgent Olson is batting .300 with 12 home runs and a 1.047 OPS. Drake Baldwin is showing zero signs of sophomore decline, batting .313/.392/.531 as the club’s primary backstop. Ozzie Albies and Michael Harris II are finally breaking out, with Dominic Smith emerging as an offensive threat. Acuna is declining, it’s true, but that doesn’t matter how much every other player has contributed.

There are still questions about depth and whether injuries will plague this club as much as before. The real test will come in the second half of the season. Can this Braves club overcome the dog days of summer? Perhaps. It would be great to see this Atlanta team finally live up to – and even exceed – the expectations set for them. only time will tell.

Trading time is over! With the NHL trade deadline approaching, the Ottawa Senators are set to play their final 21 games with a slightly adjusted roster. Inside is Warren Foegele, outside is David Perron. Since the Sens are currently four points out of a playoff spot, did they do enough? Let’s get into the details.

A look at two trades

For a full analysis of the two Senators trades, you can see here and here. These are the basics:

• In: Warren Foegele, conditional 2026 third-round pick, conditional 2026 fourth-round pick
• OUT: David Perron, 2026 second-round pick, conditional 2026 third-round pick

To simplify, the Senators went with some of their picks in the draft in exchange for an upgrade on Perron, signing Foegele for next season. With Perron out with injuries, adding a healthy winger to play the final quarter of the season would help with a playoff push. Of course, for Foegele to upgrade, he needs to return to last year’s 24-goal form. This season has been a struggle, with Foegele scoring only 9 points in 47 games.

Steps that senators did not take

The Senators have long been linked to right-shot defenseman McKenzie Weegar, who ended up with the Utah Mammoth. “I suspect Ottawa was also involved in Rob Thomas,” he said on Elliotte Freedman’s 32 Thoughts podcast.

The problem for the Senators was that they didn’t have a lot of trade chips. They have one of the weakest prospect pools in the NHL and no first-round picks. While Steve Staios has come out and said that it was the coach’s decision to sit Stephen Holiday with the Flames, I wonder if he was being held out just in case. If senators had struck a bigger deal, it would most likely have been going the other way.

As things stand, the Senators’ defense and goaltending remain the same. This is no real surprise on the net. There weren’t exactly a ton of goalkeepers available. The good news is that Ullmark has played better recently. Since returning from his leave of absence he has gone 4-0-2 with a .909 SV%. Don’t think that Levi Merilainen will be back any time soon. He is slashing .890 SV% in 14 games at Belleville. On defense, if they need a change they could add Nicholas Matinpalo to the lineup. They could also call up top prospect Carter Yakemchuk. His 27 points in 44 games are impressive. He doesn’t have a minus 37 rating.

senators lineup

Here’s how the Senators will look in their final 21 games:

• Batherson-Stutzle-Giroux
• Tkachuk-Cozens-Gregg
• Foegele-Pinto-Amadio
• cousins-or-zetterlund

• sanderson-zab
• Chabot-Jensen
• cleven-spence

final thoughts

The Senators have a playoff lineup. He has played at a playoff team level throughout the season, in addition to his goaltending and penalty kill. Ulmark has been better recently. It’s the same with the penalty kill. Since Mike Yeo took over with the penalty kill, the Senators PKs are at 80%. Earlier, PK was in a pitiful state of 71.7%. They are currently on pace for 93 points. The Bruins, who hold the final wildcard spot, are on pace for 98. You can’t forget about the Blue Jackets, who landed Connor Garland at the deadline and currently lead the Sens by three points.

In their final 21 games last season, the Senators went 14-5-2. If they can repeat this, they will finish the season with 99 points. This should be good enough to make the playoffs. Of course, there will be no bad effects from here on out. It’s hard to do, but the Senators have what it takes.

Sure, the Senators didn’t make any blockbuster moves at the deadline, but they didn’t really have the assets, nor were they in a position to do so. Warren Foegele should help this team. If he can add another hard hit that can help on the penalty kill, that would be great. Another reason for optimism—the Senators’ next two games are on the road. However, after that, they finish the season playing 12 of their remaining 19 games at home.

Danny was born and raised in Ottawa and still lives in that city. He has followed… more about Danny McCloskey