The 2026 regular season is only a week away for the Atlanta Braves. Spring training has been very eventful for the organization, and it has flown by. There has been too much to keep up with, including Jurickson Profar's second suspension, a plethora of injuries, the World Baseball Classic, and some impressive breakout performances.
Thanks to the injuries and suspension, their bench is a lot thinner than they'd prefer it to be at the start of the season. The starting rotation is also missing a good bit of depth, with injuries to Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep.
Braves fans are hoping for a much better outcome this season, so dealing with these injuries has not been encouraging. Luckily for the Braves and their fans, Atlanta has the chance to start on the right foot. Their schedule during the first five weeks is actually extremely favorable, outside of a couple of series against the reigning division champs.
Braves have no choice but to take advantage of light schedule to start the season
Firstly, the team opens the season at home against the Royals and A's who are interesting, but wh. The team then heads out for a seven-game road trip to face the Diamondbacks and Angels. Atlanta almost escaped having to play on the West Coast early in the season, but they'll once again have to deal with that.
Once the first road trip is complete, the Braves return home for a series versus the Guardians and Marlins. They'll then begin division play on the road against the Phillies and Nationals. After the series in DC, the Phillies will come to Atlanta for a brief three-game set. Two series against Philly in relatively quick succession is not awesome, but it does give the Braves a chance to set the tone.
That is going to be one of the more challenging weeks during the first month. However, after that, they'll take on the Tigers for three final games at home. The Braves then prepare for a long West Coast trip against the Rockies, Mariners, and Dodgers.
Atlanta will want to win as many games as possible during the first five weeks of the season. Hopefully, by then, the team will have a better idea of when Sean Murphy and Ha-Seong Kim will be ready to return. They couldn't ask for a much better slate of games to start the season. As long as they continue to perform as well as they have this spring, things will work out perfectly.