There’s a tight race shaping up for the Braves’ top batting line, and right now it’s a four-man fight.
Matt Olson is sitting on the best wRC+ of the group at 124, along with a .354 wOBA and a .355 xwOBA. Even so, his September has been rough, homer yesterday aside, and you have to look back to the start of August to find a time when his xwOBA was as high as .350.
Drake Baldwin is next at 121 wRC+, with a .351 wOBA and a .362 xwOBA. He’s also cooled off some in September, and since his huge July run - after a rough return from the Injured List - he’s basically been sitting around league average in both wOBA and xwOBA.
Ronald Acuña Jr. has the same xwOBA as Baldwin, but a slightly worse gap between that and his output, which leaves him at a 120 wRC+. He’s been scorching in September so far, posting a 189 wRC+, but that has come with a big overperformance over roughly two weeks: a .453 wOBA against a .367 xwOBA. Even so, his xwOBA is still better than what the others on this list are putting up.
Michael Harris II rounds out the group. He leads the position players in fWAR and has a 119 wRC+, plus a .347 wOBA and a .340 xwOBA.
But September has been ugly for him - a 60 wRC+, .259 wOBA, and .301 xwOBA - and from July on, the underlying numbers haven’t been great either. The twist is that he’s been underhitting his inputs early and then getting some good fortune at the plate later, so he could still catch fire over the final two weeks.
Acuña’s recent surge makes him look like the likeliest candidate, but this one is far from settled. It could come down to the wire for all four.
In Other News...
Braves Face One Tough October Roster Call After Latest Injuries
With 12 regular-season games left, the Braves are already mapping out the postseason and the latest injuries have forced another look at how that October roster might take shape. Bryce Elder and Lane Thomas both changed the calculus, and the updated projection now reflects a team trying to balance familiar everyday pieces with enough flexibility to survive whatever the playoffs ask of it.
Behind the plate, Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy are both in the picture, while the infield group still centers on names like Matt Olson and Ha-Seong Kim. The pitching staff has also shifted, with Ray Kerr stepping in for Elder, and the remaining spots have become a real puzzle of fit and function, including depth players who can pinch-run or pinch-hit when the game tightens and every decision carries more weight. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Face A Tough Bullpen Call As Robert Suarez Nears Return
Robert Suarez is moving closer to a return after getting through live batting practice, a promising sign for a Braves bullpen that could use another late-inning arm as the season tightens. His recovery from an elbow injury has kept him on the shelf, but the ramp-up has at least given Atlanta a clearer picture of when it might get one of its more important relief pieces back in the mix.
Suarezs timeline now comes with a roster decision attached, and that is where things get tricky for Atlanta. Adding him back should strengthen the bullpen, but it also forces the Braves to weigh pitching depth against the need to keep enough arms available, with relievers like Bailey Falter potentially feeling the squeeze as the club sorts out how to enter a critical stretch of the schedule. [Read more 🡒]
Braves International Class Looks Better Than That Ugly DSL Record
The Dominican Summer League record was ugly, but the Braves have reason to look past it. Atlantas 2026 international class included several young players who flashed enough ability to make the organizations long view a little more encouraging, even as the group as a whole finished near the bottom in both run production and run prevention. Jose Nelo, Sherrintley Da Costa Gomez, Jose Manon and Jorwin Pulido were among the signings who gave scouts something to keep tracking.
Pulido, in particular, stood out by earning a midseason jump to the Florida Complex League and then handling the higher level better after the move. The kind of year the Braves got in the DSL is rarely pretty, but individual progress matters most at this stage, and the early returns suggest this class may be better than the final standings make it look. [Read more 🡒]