Previewing the new Atlanta Braves Bullpen

As we all know by now, the Atlanta Braves made a trio of moves this week to shore up the bullpen. Let’s look at where the pen stands as of now.

Without a doubt, the Atlanta Braves knew they had a weakness, and Alex Anthopolous set out to fix it, and most agree he did. In fact, if it weren’t for the Astros adding Zack Grienke, the Braves would have easily won the MLB Trade Deadline.

Not too mention, we kept all of the “untouchable” prospects in the system that will either produce in 2020 or be used to acquire bigger names in the Winter.

So let’s look at the revamped bullpen that was maybe the biggest and only weakness that the Braves had, and where it stands now after all the deals were made.

No questions asked

It is without a doubt that Shane Greene is the new closer of the team and should fit nicely right into the back end of our bullpen. For the first time really all year, Braves coaches, players, and fans should breathe as easy as possible with a lead going into the 9th.

Not to say Greene will be perfect, but it’s been a while since the Braves had a closer that could be this trustworthy.

Along with that, I think it’s fair to say Mark Melancon and Chris Martin will slide right into the set-up role or any high leverage situations before the 9th. In a nutshell, they will be our second and third best options.

The exciting part to me is all the new player’s walk numbers on the year. None of them have issued more than 16 on the year.

In short, the three new pitchers will probably be the three that are relied upon in the late innings in close games. If they continue to produce like they have all year, the Braves very well may have turned a bottom 10 bullpen into a top 10 bullpen.

Let’s now move on to the middle relievers.