The 2026 MLB season is finally here, and Atlanta Braves fans get to see their favorite team in action. Atlanta's first series is against the Royals at home. It's a nice change to start the season at home for once, rather than a torturous West Coast road trip.
Expectations are high this season, as fans would like to see a better outcome than the last two years. It hasn't been the most encouraging start with Jurickson Profar's suspension and the multitude of injuries.
Atlanta had a pretty good offseason, aside from not adding to the starting rotation. That's become a rather glaring issue, and it may explain why a recent record prediction by The Athletic's Keith Law.
Keith Law's record prediction for the Braves in 2026 misses the mark
He has the Braves finishing third in the NL East with an 83-79 record in 2026. Law has the Mets winning the division with a 94-68 record, followed by the Phillies (90-72), the Braves, the Marlins (72-90), and the Nationals (69-93). Law brings up the aforementioned injuries to starters as the main reason he is concerned about the team's ability to contend for a division title.
"I think they’re better than they were last year, when they went 76-86 despite being about as league-average a team as you can get, but their odds of contending have gone down quite a bit in the last six weeks."
That's a fair critique because if anything happens to the starting pitchers the Braves do have, they are in for a rude awakening. However, the record of 83-79 seems incredibly too low with how talented and healthy the offense is.
Atlanta may not win the division, the Mets are much improved this season, and the Phillies aren't going anywhere. However, the Braves are much better than this record indicates. Even with the injuries, there aren't really any holes in the offense. They have shown a lot of promise at the plate this spring.
Obviously, the health of the offense could change at any moment. However, it seems that almost everyone is healthy and ready to go. Couple that with the fact that Atlanta will hopefully add Sean Murphy and Ha-Seong Kim into the mix in about a month or so, and the Braves are sitting pretty.
The bench is a bit light with those two missing. Once they come back into the fold, the bench is immediately upgraded. Mauricio Dubon can become the Swiss Army Knife that Atlanta envisioned this offseason.
It just feels like the Braves will win closer to 89 or 90 games this season. The team is tired of the underperformance of the last two seasons. They will be looking to return to being one of the most feared teams in the league.