Ranking NL East starting rotations: Braves have work to do

3. Atlanta Braves

If depth were the sole ranking here, no doubt the Atlanta Braves would claim the top spot, as truth be told, they likely have 8 or 9 pitchers who they could trust to toe the hill starting a game.

However, as it lies, the Atlanta Braves sit right in the middle of the NL East teams with their starting rotation.

Mike Soroka will surely be the game 1 starter for the season, and Max Fried will likely slot behind him. However, they are surely bound to regress even a tiny bit after their very successful 2019 campaigns.

That does not mean they will not be good, but it’s a tad bit unfair to expect a repeat performance.

Of course, the Atlanta Braves have tons of options, but it seems that Mike Foltynewicz and Sean Newcomb will be the three and four starters for the Braves.

We all know that Mike Foltynewicz can look like the second coming of a Hall of Famer at times as he did in Game 2 of the NLDS, or look completely lost on the mound as he did in Game 5. It all depends on which version you get most of the time.

Also, Sean Newcomb will be just fine if he can limit the free passes, which he did for the most part at the end of the season last year and in spring training.

Lastly, as we are all aware, the big question is who will be the fifth Braves starter? If the season holds out long enough for Cole Hamels to be healthy, the answer is easy. But if not, will it be Felix Hernandez or Kyle Wright? Both of whom were dealing before the sudden stoppage because of the virus outbreak.