<img alt="Atlanta Braves v Pittsburgh Pirates" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/INAeLeiF2z7GBV6nCkQek8cFABM=/130x0:2871x1827/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73494355/2154275052.0.jpg">
Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images
The Braves finished July strong and look like they are finally starting to build some momentum. It was a rough start, but the Atlanta Braves finished off their seven-game road trip by winning four of the last five games, including a series win against the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers. While the Wild Card race remains tight, the NL East deficit is suddenly down to 6.5 games. There is still a long way to go, but for the moment, it feels as though the Braves might be trending in the right direction.
Jorge Soler back at home at the top of the order
Jorge Soler made his 2024 Braves debut in Wednesday’s game and went 0-for-3 with a walk. Jarred Kelenic, who has been the Braves’ primary leadoff man for over a month, hit eighth on Wednesday.
You simply can’t replace a player like Ronald Acuña Jr, but the Braves have been lacking a real option to lead off after his injury. Entering Wednesday, the leadoff spot for Atlanta was hitting .235/.315/.378 with a .693 OPS. Soler saw some time in the leadoff spot while with the Giants and put up a .279/.380/.487 line. The Braves are hoping that his power and on-base skills can help spark an offense that has largely slumbered since the start of May, though not through any huge fault of their own. He certainly provided that boost back in 2021 where he reached base at a .358 clip and slugged .524 with 14 home runs in 55 games after the Braves acquired him.
Power starting to shine through
While Atlanta’s offense has been inconsistent, the power is finally starting to show up. The Braves hit four more homers in Wednesday’s win and now have 18 over their last six games. They now rank seventh in the majors with 133 homers.
Matt Olson and Travis d’Arnaud went back-to-back twice in Wednesday’s win over the Brewers. Per CJ Nitkowski, that was the first time since Javy Lopez and Andruw Jones did it in 1998. Fred McGriff and David Justice also did it back in 1993. Mauricio Dubon and Jose Altuve did it last September for the Astros which was the most recent time it had happened in the majors before Wednesday’s game.
Austin Riley finishes off another hot July
Austin Riley’s two-run single in the seventh inning Wednesday gave the Braves a lead that they wouldn’t relinquish. He tied a career-high with four hits in Tuesday’s game and finished July hitting .280/.324/.527 with eight doubles and five home runs. Since 2017, Riley has 37 homers in the month of July which is the second most in the majors, trailing only Manny Machado. After a slow start, Riley’s xwOBA is now up to around .360, which is where it was in both 2021 and 2023. (In 2022, he set a career high with a .378 xwOBA.)
Orlando Arcia extends hit streak
Orlando Arcia was largely a league average bat in his first two seasons in a Braves uniform. His offensive production has cratered in 2024 and returned to more of his career levels. However, he has also shown some signs of life recently. Arcia went 1-for-4 in Wednesday’s win and extended his hitting streak to a career-best 11 straight games. The stretch is the second time in Arcia’s career that he has had a hitting streak reach double digits. He also hit in 11 straight games back in 2017 while he was a member of the Brewers.
Rotation flexes its muscles
There was plenty of angst in regard to the Braves’ rotation entering the series in Milwaukee. Max Fried was already on the Injured List and it looked like Reynaldo López might join him after exiting Sunday’s start in New York with forearm soreness. Additionally, the Braves planned to start Grant Holmes in Monday’s series opener and then have someone make a spot start Tuesday to give Chris Sale and the rest of the rotation an extra day of rest.
As it has done many times this season, the rotation stepped up. Holmes made the first major league start of his career in Monday’s game and was impressive, getting charged with one run, a solo homer, to go along with eight strikeouts in five innings. The bullpen blew up behind him, but Atlanta had to be encouraged by the showing.
Tuesday’s start went to Bryce Elder who needed a good outing after largely struggling for most of the season. Elder delivered, striking out seven while getting charged with one run (non-homer variety) over 6 1/3 innings. Elder’s strong start to the 2023 season is nothing but a distant memory now as he has largely struggled since late June of that year. While he is still carrying a 5.67 ERA through nine starts, he has a 4.22 FIP and a 3.96 xFIP which suggests that he has been a bit unfortunate. Elder could still play a critical role down the stretch as Atlanta tries to protect its rotation and keep everyone healthy and fresh for the postseason.
<img alt="Atlanta Braves v Pittsburgh Pirates" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/INAeLeiF2z7GBV6nCkQek8cFABM=/130x0:2871x1827/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73494355/2154275052.0.jpg">
Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images
The Braves finished July strong and look like they are finally starting to build some momentum. It was a rough start, but the Atlanta Braves finished off their seven-game road trip by winning four of the last five games, including a series win against the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers. While the Wild Card race remains tight, the NL East deficit is suddenly down to 6.5 games. There is still a long way to go, but for the moment, it feels as though the Braves might be trending in the right direction.
Jorge Soler back at home at the top of the order
Jorge Soler made his 2024 Braves debut in Wednesday’s game and went 0-for-3 with a walk. Jarred Kelenic, who has been the Braves’ primary leadoff man for over a month, hit eighth on Wednesday.
You simply can’t replace a player like Ronald Acuña Jr, but the Braves have been lacking a real option to lead off after his injury. Entering Wednesday, the leadoff spot for Atlanta was hitting .235/.315/.378 with a .693 OPS. Soler saw some time in the leadoff spot while with the Giants and put up a .279/.380/.487 line. The Braves are hoping that his power and on-base skills can help spark an offense that has largely slumbered since the start of May, though not through any huge fault of their own. He certainly provided that boost back in 2021 where he reached base at a .358 clip and slugged .524 with 14 home runs in 55 games after the Braves acquired him.
Power starting to shine through
While Atlanta’s offense has been inconsistent, the power is finally starting to show up. The Braves hit four more homers in Wednesday’s win and now have 18 over their last six games. They now rank seventh in the majors with 133 homers.
Matt Olson and Travis d’Arnaud went back-to-back twice in Wednesday’s win over the Brewers. Per CJ Nitkowski, that was the first time since Javy Lopez and Andruw Jones did it in 1998. Fred McGriff and David Justice also did it back in 1993. Mauricio Dubon and Jose Altuve did it last September for the Astros which was the most recent time it had happened in the majors before Wednesday’s game.
Austin Riley finishes off another hot July
Austin Riley’s two-run single in the seventh inning Wednesday gave the Braves a lead that they wouldn’t relinquish. He tied a career-high with four hits in Tuesday’s game and finished July hitting .280/.324/.527 with eight doubles and five home runs. Since 2017, Riley has 37 homers in the month of July which is the second most in the majors, trailing only Manny Machado. After a slow start, Riley’s xwOBA is now up to around .360, which is where it was in both 2021 and 2023. (In 2022, he set a career high with a .378 xwOBA.)
Orlando Arcia extends hit streak
Orlando Arcia was largely a league average bat in his first two seasons in a Braves uniform. His offensive production has cratered in 2024 and returned to more of his career levels. However, he has also shown some signs of life recently. Arcia went 1-for-4 in Wednesday’s win and extended his hitting streak to a career-best 11 straight games. The stretch is the second time in Arcia’s career that he has had a hitting streak reach double digits. He also hit in 11 straight games back in 2017 while he was a member of the Brewers.
Rotation flexes its muscles
There was plenty of angst in regard to the Braves’ rotation entering the series in Milwaukee. Max Fried was already on the Injured List and it looked like Reynaldo López might join him after exiting Sunday’s start in New York with forearm soreness. Additionally, the Braves planned to start Grant Holmes in Monday’s series opener and then have someone make a spot start Tuesday to give Chris Sale and the rest of the rotation an extra day of rest.
As it has done many times this season, the rotation stepped up. Holmes made the first major league start of his career in Monday’s game and was impressive, getting charged with one run, a solo homer, to go along with eight strikeouts in five innings. The bullpen blew up behind him, but Atlanta had to be encouraged by the showing.
Tuesday’s start went to Bryce Elder who needed a good outing after largely struggling for most of the season. Elder delivered, striking out seven while getting charged with one run (non-homer variety) over 6 1/3 innings. Elder’s strong start to the 2023 season is nothing but a distant memory now as he has largely struggled since late June of that year. While he is still carrying a 5.67 ERA through nine starts, he has a 4.22 FIP and a 3.96 xFIP which suggests that he has been a bit unfortunate. Elder could still play a critical role down the stretch as Atlanta tries to protect its rotation and keep everyone healthy and fresh for the postseason.
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