Braves Keep Fighting Despite Injuries

Photo by Kevin D. Liles/Atlanta Braves/Getty Images

August 29, 2024

The Atlanta Braves‘ Opening Day lineup built off the momentum of their stellar 2023 regular season. The Braves lined up with seven different All-Stars on Opening Day on March 29 when they faced the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. From 2023 NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. playing in right field, home run leader Matt Olson, and flamethrower Spencer Strider, the Braves lined up with their best day one. Projections had the Bravos 98.7% chance to make the playoffs, 90.8% chance to win the division and 2.9% chance to win the World Series.

Braves Opening Day lineup in Philadelphia:

RF Acuña Jr.
2B Albies
3B Riley
1B Olson
DH Ozuna
CF Harris II
C Murphy
SS Arcia
LF Kelenic

RHP Spencer Strider

— Justin Toscano (@JustinCToscano) March 29, 2024

The Braves walked out of Opening Day victorious, earning a 9–3 victory. However, in the seventh inning, All-Star catcher Sean Murphy felt discomfort on a swing, and suffered an oblique strain. An injury on Opening Day for the Braves was a brutal way to start the season. In hindsight, it was the start of an injury rollercoaster as a team. The day one lineup, would play one game with each other all season, and that was Opening Day.

Shuffling Through Lineups

After Murphy went down, fortunately the Braves had veteran catcher Travis d’Arnaud to back him up. Their platoon luck ran out very quick. On April 5, Spencer Strider took the mound against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He did not have his best stuff, velocity or command wise, and his night ended in the fourth inning with some discomfort. Strider had a bone fragment which caused an elbow surgery, requiring season-ending surgery.

Star right fielder and 2023 NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. went down May 26 with another knee injury. After further scans, another torn ACL for the Venezuelan sensation set him back for the rest of the season. However, backup options were limited for Acuña.

Other Braves notable injuries are right-hander Ray Kerr, Michael Harris II, Ozzie Albies, Austin Riley, and A.J Minter. Harris returned on Monday as a pinch-hitter after a HBP, but his main injury was his hamstring, holding him out for two months.

The Braves lineups now include Whit Merrifield, Ramon Laureano, and Gio Urshela as everyday starters. At their worst times, the Brsaves would include three players from their opening day lineup.

Game 2 in Minnesota! #BravesCountry pic.twitter.com/GSufssc3LS

— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 27, 2024

The Opposite of 2023

2023’s bill of health was quite clean. Every team goes through ups and downs on the IL, but the Braves’ 2023 health kept them away from major IL stints. Having their strongest players on the field gave them the best record in the majors. As a team, they ranked first in runs scored, but eleventh in runs allowed.

In 2024, the core roles have flipped. The Braves rank sixteenth in runs scored compared to second in runs allowed. The quality pitching of Chris Sale, Reynaldo López, Spencer Schwellenbach, Max Fried and other starters drive the Braves to the final Wild Card spot. The bullpen’s amazing tools, including closer Raisel Iglesias have sealed down leads. Tough and gritty performances from their platoon players helped the Braves get into this position. Now, they need to hold it.