The postseason is winding down, and it honestly doesn't look like anyone is going to deny the Brewers their first World Series title this year. However, while the Atlanta Braves got eliminated in the NLDS, their influence on the playoffs is clear when you look at the former Braves players scattered across these rosters. To say that it hasn't been fun to see William Contreras raking may be an understatement.
However, not all of the former Braves players in this year's postseason performed well. In fact, a few particularly high-profile players who previously departed Atlanta came up short when their new teams needed them to come up big.
Here are the former Braves players that fell short when their teams needed them the most this postseason
Prior expectations matter here, so you won't find former Braves players who didn't even make the postseason roster or were never a big part of their teams' plans from the get-go. This is about former Braves players who were supposed to play critical roles and didn't live up to the hype.
Freddie Freeman
Now, did Freddie Freeman destroy the Braves? Yes, yes, he did. In the first three games of the NLDS, Freeman had a 1.371 OPS, including a pair of home runs. However, the story was very different against the Brewers in the NLCS, where the Dodgers got routed in a four-game sweep. Not only was Freeman not nearly as good as he was against the Braves (of course), but he only recorded one hit, and that was a single in Game 1. It is little consolation right now, but it is kinda nice that Freddie won't get another ring this year and his struggles played a big role in that failure.
Max Fried
Max Fried was a great leader in the Braves' rotation, and his exit from the Braves was far less acrimonious than Freeman's was. The Yankees just threw an insane offer Fried's way, and no one really blamed him for taking it or blamed the Braves for not matching the offer. Thankfully, Fried did not really make Atlanta regret letting him walk. Fried did at least shut down the Red Sox in the Wild Card round, but the Rays gave him fits in the NLDS where he gave up four runs in 5.2 innings in Game 3, which also happened to be the loss that bounced the Yankees from the playoffs.
Dansby Swanson
Everyone was in agreement that Dansby Swanson was going to remain a fantastic defensive shortstop for a long time, but the Braves and Cubs disagreed on how much value Swanson's bat would bring. Chicago was more bullish, so they threw $177 million at him, but that decision hasn't worked out as well as they had hoped. Swanson's offensive production took a big step back in 2026, and he went completely hitless in the Cubs' playoff series against the Padres.
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