The good news for Atlanta is that they have one of the deepest lineups in baseball. Marcell Ozuna is delivering one of his best seasons yet as he hits in the middle of a lineup that includes Matt Olson, Ozzie Albies, and Austin Riley. That makes the heart of the lineup incredibly dangerous, even without Acuna hitting at the top of it. While Riely and Olson have both started slowing, we still expect both to finish with impressive numbers.
The biggest question will be how Michael Harris II handles taking over the role of leadoff hitter. The 23-year-old has been solid for Atlanta, but his .303 OBP is a major red flag. One thing Acuna did so well was getting on base, and the young outfielder hasn’t done that so far in 2024. As promising as a prospect as Harris is, it could take him time to develop into the star this team now needs.
While Acuna was struggling, bookmakers counted on him turning things around. That kept Atlanta as a favorite to win the NL despite ranking seventh in batting average (.251) and fifteenth in runs scored (238). Those are not even close to the numbers we expect from the Braves, which become more of a problem without the hope of an Acuna bounce back to bail them out.
Offensive struggles will be a major problem given the Braves' pitching. Max Fried, Chris Sale, and Reynaldo Lopez have been fantastic in the rotation, but the team also lost ace Spencer Strider for the season. As well as the staff has played without him, its unwise to trust Sale and Lopez to remain at this level (and healthy). If they regress, it could lead to a rough season for the Braves.
