3 Braves Players That Needs to Prove Themselves for a Playoff Roster Spot
Here are three Braves that are on the current active roster that may not be with the team in October
The Atlanta Braves may be division champions but that doesn’t mean the rest of the regular season is meaningless. First and foremost, the team is still competing to earn home field advantage throughout the playoffs. In addition to that, there are a few players who still need to prove they deserve to be on the postseason roster.
Colin McHugh
Collin McHugh is in his 11th season as a MLB pitcher and is having one of the worst seasons of his career. However, that has happened in an interesting way. It seems like McHugh is either recording a scoreless outing or getting absolutely shelled. There is no in between.
He has posted a 4.30 ERA in 2023 across 41 games (58.2 innings pitched). McHugh has had four appearances this season where he has been tagged with three or more earned runs. For a starting pitching, that wouldn’t be a concerning statistic. For a reliever, it is concerning considering he is only being asked to pitch an inning per outing, maybe two in special circumstances.
This type of inconsistency is something that most teams will not take a chance on in the postseason. Every inning, every out is way too valuable to take chances with someone who is known for giving up crooked numbers. If McHugh does not turn things around, do not expect to see him in the playoffs.
Luke Williams
Luke Williams is a player who there just may simply not be room for. The Atlanta infield is full of consistency and if healthy will not have much change if any throughout the postseason.
Forrest Wall will most likely be summoned for pinch running scenarios in October and Nicky Lopez will be first in line for replacing a normal starter if necessary. This would make Luke Williams the odd man out.
Kyle Wright
Now this one may come as a surprise to many but it’s the truth. Kyle Wright has been injured for a major chunk of the season. He has only had one start since returning from his IL stint and it was not pretty.
He surrendered six earned runs in just three innings against the Phillies. Many will argue that he was facing a really good lineup and that’s bound to happen. Well, guess what. In the postseason, he will be facing even better lineups, potentially the same Phillies lineup.
Yes, Wright was a 21 game winner a season ago and has potential to be one of the best starters in the league. 2023 may just not be his season. Let’s face the facts. Even with Wright out of the rotation, the Braves found a way to win more games than any other team in the MLB. Atlanta will have
options that could get better results than Kyle Wright when games matter most.