Atlanta Braves fans haven't forgotten how difficult it was to watch the organization rebuild a little over a decade ago. There was a feeling that Liberty Media was being extremely cheap and didn't care about the fan experience. This put a bad taste in the mouth of fans and didn't do a lot to build trust.
The need to cut payroll and shipping off fan favorite players like Craig Kimbrel and Andrelton Simmons didn't help improve that rift either. However, as they say, time heals all wounds. Eventually, the sting of loss wore off, and the process to build a sustainable contender began.
The John Coppolella/John Hart era seemed to be going well, but that ended in a horrible controversy that handcuffed Atlanta for years. Alex Anthopoulos took over and had a lot of hard work to do.
Liberty Media's turnaround with Braves fans has been quite the rollercoaster ride
Atlanta opened a new stadium with an impressive experience outside the stadium for fans to enjoy. This gave fans more motivation to make it to a game with something for everyone. However, the fear was that ownership wouldn't help the front office build a championship roster.
Within a year, despite budget constraints, AA had the Braves winning division titles again. This came from savvy moves like rewarding young prospects with early extensions and adding veterans to help shape those prospects.
Some saw the Braves and Liberty Media rewarding young talent as them being cheap and taking advantage of players. However, this model has been effective and it has spread to other MLB organizations.
It helped with the team winning, but fans were still distrustful of ownership to spend big. That's still a contention point for a lot of the fan base. However, Atlanta has stated they want to be a top-five payroll in 2026, and it seems they're sticking to it.
All of the struggles and investment into the overall fan experience propelled the Braves to become a model franchise. They are the blueprint for how to put a consistent contender on the field.
It was tough for a while for fans as the team always felt so close to making it far in the playoffs, but would falter immediately. Fortunately, everything came together in 2021 for the team to win the World Series. Despite the season going about as poorly as it could in the first half, Atlanta's front office had a great trade deadline to propel the team to one of the best in baseball.
Unfortunately, that tumultuous relationship with ownership remains a bit rocky. Losing Freddie Freeman, Dansby Swanson, and Max Fried to free agency made fans a bit furious with ownership. However, to be fair to Alex Anthopoulos, he has always found a way to fill the void when things don't work out.
2025 wasn't helpful with the team choosing to reset the luxury tax, but promising to spend. 2026 is their opportunity to prove to the entire fan base that they can trust them to provide the funds to put a complete team on the field.