4 Braves who are playing their way out of the team's 2024 plans
We could see some pretty significant changes to the Braves' roster after the 2023 season.
Despite rumors to the contrary after a couple hiccups, the Atlanta Braves are in great shape in 2023. They hold the best record in all of baseball and it seems like the offense puts up a crooked number every single game. Sure, the Braves haven't been QUITE as dominant as they were earlier in the season, but the reality is that that was never sustainable over 162 games.
However, some cracks in their roster have widened over the course of the season. Time will tell if these issues will prove costly in the postseason this year, but it does seem very likely that there could be significant changes to the Braves' roster, particularly on the pitching staff, once we get into the offseason.
Here are 4 Braves who are playing their way out of the team's 2024 plans
For the sake of clarity, this is not a judgment of any of these players' character or contributions to the team over the years. In several of these cases, these are players that hold a very special place in fans hearts for what they did in the past. However, there has to be a recognition at some point of when that nostalgia is outweighed by the needs of the team going forward and changes have to be made. The Braves don't want to be one of those teams that hangs on to a guy or guys way too long especially given how well set up they are for success in the long-term.
Let's take a look at a few Braves players that could be playing their way out of town.
Charlie Morton
For the last few seasons, many have wondered just how much Charlie Morton has left in the tank and for the most part, he has defied expectations. Charlie came to the Braves before the 2021 season seemingly in the twilight of his career and promptly put up a 4.5 fWAR season. Last season wasn't his best season, but he was still striking out nearly 11 batters per 9 innings pitched when it was all said and done. However, there are signs that the end is coming soon and the Braves may have to make a tough decision this offseason.
While his 3.71 ERA has been fine, Morton has seen a significant decline in his peripherals. The strikeouts have gone down and the walks have gone up as hitters have been less and less fooled by him. His issues have been particularly pronounced in the second half of 2023 so far with a 4.55 ERA and even steeper regression in his strikeout and walk rates into down right spooky territory. If Morton was a cheaper option, maybe running him back one more time would make sense. However, his club option is for $20 million next year and that money would be better spent elsewhere. It also wouldn't be shocking if Morton ended up retiring.
Eddie Rosario
The Atlanta offense has been legitimately insane this year, but one position where they have underperformed has been in left field where they rank 20th in all of baseball in fWAR at 0.8. The lineup has been so good that that hasn't really mattered, but left fields stands to be the easiest position for the Braves to upgrade this offseason and that could mean the end of Eddie Rosario's time in Atlanta.
Braves fans will always remember Eddie basically single-handedly beating the Dodgers in the 2021 NLCS. However, he is essentially unplayable against lefties these days and his 99 wRC+ this season isn't exactly lighting the world on fire. Sure, he still has games where he goes wild and that is fun, but going after an every day left fielder instead of exercising Rosario's $9 million option for next season seems like the smart decision even if it would stink to not have him around anymore.
Jared Shuster
It wasn't that long ago that Jared Shuster was making noise as a future fixture in the Braves' rotation. While concerns regarding the quality of his fastball have been around for a while, his changeup and ability to throw strikes was good enough that many thought that he could make it work. Famously, Shuster impressed in spring training this year enough to force his way into the starting rotation conversations. Unfortunately, that is pretty much where the good news ended for Jared in 2023.
In nine starts in the big leagues this year, Shuster got exposed as he posted a 5.00 ERA and walked nearly as many batters as he struck out. Struggling in the big leagues at first is hardly newsworthy as many fine players have taken a bit of time to adjust. However, Shuster's issues have spilled over to his work in the minor leagues as well as he has put up a 5.52 ERA with big-time regression in his strikeout and walk rates at Triple-A in 2023. Instead of being in the conversation for the rotation, there is more reason to wonder if the Braves need to move on from him.
Collin McHugh
Collin McHugh's 2023 season is a lesson in the volatility of relievers. Last season, McHugh was a revelation for Atlanta while posting a 2.60 ERA with a 9.74 K/9 and 1.82 BB/9. Having that sort of quality in the bullpen that can also throw multiple innings was a fantastic luxury. However, it does seem like Father Time has finally caught up with McHugh and the likelihood that the Braves exercise his $6 million 2024 club option gets less and less by the day.
Through 37 appearances in 2023, McHugh's ERA has bounced up to 3.55, his strikeout rate has dropped off a cliff to 6.75 K/9, and his walk rate has jumped to 3.20 BB/9. There has been some modest improvements in his peripherals in the second half of 2023, but he also just recently had a nightmare relief appearance against the Mets. $6 million isn't a huge amount of money and there is time for McHugh to get things figured out, but his spot in the bullpen in 2024 does seem like it is in jeopardy at the moment.
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