The Braves are moving toward the stretch run with one big ingredient potentially falling into place: Ronald Acuña Jr. is starting to look like Ronald Acuña Jr. again.
Atlanta has spent August trying to do two things at once - protect its NL East lead and gather enough steam for October. That second part gets a lot easier if its best player keeps heating up, and there are signs that Acuña is doing exactly that.
Through 11 games in August, the Braves right fielder has posted an .868 OPS and a .381 xwOBA. That’s a strong month by almost any standard, even if it still sits below what Acuña has typically done in this part of the calendar. Entering Friday, his career OPS in August stood at .969, and he has a career .929 OPS in regular season games played in September and October.
That late-season track record is the kind of detail that matters for a Braves team trying to position itself for one of the top two seeds in the National League. Acuña has repeatedly shown he can raise his game when the schedule tightens and the spotlight gets brighter, and The Athletic’s latest MLB power rankings pointed to that same trait as a reason for optimism.
For Atlanta, the appeal is obvious. If Acuña gets rolling and Matt Olson is doing the same, the Braves can lean on two proven bats who have already shown they can deliver when the pressure climbs. There is still time before the real October squeeze arrives, but getting those hitters hot now is a good problem to have.
And if the offense is humming, it takes some of the heat off the bigger questions that still hang over the rotation. Acuña has long been the player who sets the tone for Atlanta’s lineup, and when he’s driving the offense, the whole group tends to play with more force. If the Braves’ best hitters catch fire together, they’ll be a dangerous team once the postseason starts.
In Other News...
Braves May Have Just Dodged A Massive Rotation Gamble
The Braves spent part of the winter staring down a rotation swing that would have changed the shape of their staff in a hurry. Ken Rosenthal reported Atlanta was close to finishing a deal for Jacob deGrom, with the only real hurdle being his approval because of the no-trade clause attached to his contract. On paper, it was the kind of move that could have given the Braves a front-line arm and altered the balance of the pitching staff immediately.
But the timing of the reported talks now carries a very different feel, because deGroms recent health scare was enough to make any team pause before diving in deeper. For Atlanta, the appeal was obvious, but so were the risks - the money, the roster commitment, and the reality that even elite talent can come with a built-in scare if the medical side does not cooperate. A near-miss like this is the sort of thing that can look like a miss in the moment and a bullet dodged a little later. [Read more 🡒]
Former Braves Catcher Is Suddenly Part Of The Dodgers Injury Shuffle
The Dodgers catching picture has been in flux for a while, and the latest move only adds another layer to it. Los Angeles signed veteran backstop Chadwick Tromp to a minor league deal and sent him to Triple-A Oklahoma City, a depth add prompted by the continued absences of Will Smith and Dalton Rushing behind the plate. Tromp steps into the organization after Chuckie Robinson was released, giving the Dodgers another experienced option as they try to steady the position.
For Braves fans, Tromp is a familiar name, and his path back into the spotlight has come quickly. He had already split this season between Atlanta and Baltimore before landing in Los Angeles, where the Dodgers are still waiting on their regular catchers to work back from injury. Smith is making progress in his recovery, while Rushing is expected to miss several weeks but could still factor later if the club gets to October with enough depth intact. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Used A Ruthless Draft Strategy To Chase Premium Talent
The Braves took a hard-nosed approach to their draft bonus pool, signing three college senior minor leaguers for just $500 apiece. It is a move that fits the modern realities of the draft, where teams can manipulate savings at the margins and redirect money toward players they value more highly, including prospects who need over-slot deals to get them signed.
It is also the sort of tactic that has become part of the sports shadow play, even if it is perfectly legal under the current rules. Other clubs have done it too, but the Braves use of it underscores just how aggressively front offices will work the system when premium talent is on the board and every dollar in the pool can matter. [Read more 🡒]