Atlanta Braves Opening Day Roster Prediction version 1.0

Opening Day for the Atlanta Braves is less than three weeks away, so we need to start thinking about what this Braves roster is going to look like. The Braves are in the fortunate position of not having a lot of roster uncertainty going into 2023. Barring some sort of injury, most of the roster is set and the spots with some uncertainty either have some heavy favorites, will probably be some kind of a rotation, or are pretty low impact spots.

However, that doesn’t change the fact that there are some questions to answer before the team breaks camp. Below is our first crack at trying to predict who will be on the Braves’ Opening Day roster in 2023. After another week or two, we post an updated look as these things are always fluid.

Catcher

Sean Murphy, Travis d'Arnaud

Pretty easy to project these two guys. The Braves spent a bunch of trade capital to bring Murphy into the fold as their catcher of the future and extended him shortly thereafter. With the running game being a focus with the new rules changes, Murphy should be a weapon there. d’Arnaud is a staple even if his time behind the plate will wane a bit with Murphy around, but TdA will also probably see plenty of time at DH this season as well.

First Base

Matt Olson

Again, nothing shocking here. Olson is going to be manning first base for the Braves for the foreseeable future and has looked quite good this spring at the plate. Even with a pretty horrific slump last season and his defense not being up to his usual high standards, he was still a three WAR player last year.

Second Base 

Ozzie Albies

There was a moment of concern earlier this spring when it was announced that Ozzie had offseason shoulder surgery, but all seems to be fine now. A healthy Ozzie was always a mortal lock to play second for the Braves. It is worth keeping an eye on the fact that his spring is not off to the best start at the plate, but that won't impact whether he starts at second.

Shortstop

Vaughn Grissom

I know there were rumblings that Orlando Arcia could have ended up being the Braves' shortstop in 2023, but that never made much sense to me unless Grissom was just atrocious defensively at short. He isn't a plus defender there, but he has looked good enough there to alleviate any doomsday scenarios.

Third Base

Austin Riley

When you have a potential MVP candidate that plays third base, you play him at third base. One thing is a little concerning is the left side of the infield's defense with both no shifts and swapping Vaughn Grissom for Dansby and having Austin over there, but hopefully Austin can make improvements coming in on grounders.

Outfield

Ronald Acuna Jr.

Michael Harris II

Eddie Rosario

Left field is obviously the roster spot with the most intrigue so we will start there. Rosario has looked decent enough at the plate to at least get the lion's share of the playing time early on against righties to start the season. However, I do think the Braves will do a fair bit of platooning in 2023 in left. I am not going to be shocked if we see more plate appearances out of Kevin Pillar than we may have projected and there is a chance that Ozuna sees a couple starts here and there in left.

In center field, we have the reigning NL Rookie of the Year Michael Harris and this is another one of those mortal lock spots. His all-around game, including already being one of the better defensive centerfielders in the league right now, makes him an interesting dark horse MVP pick. No surprises here.

Finally, we have one of the most talented players in all of baseball in Ronald Acuna Jr. Ronnie certainly didn't look like his usual self after he returned from season ending knee surgery in 2021. However, he still hit 15 home runs and stole 29 bases in 533 plate appearances. Now that he has had a full offseason to heal up completely and looks very motivated, expect a big season from him and you probably won't be disappointed.

Designated Hitter

Marcell Ozuna

Yeah, I hate it, too...but this is pretty much a given. Snit said that Ozuna was going to make the team and this is the spot where at least trying to get something out of him makes sense as his outfield defense at this point is atrocious. I expect whichever catcher isn't playing in the field to get plenty of DH plate appearances, but early on we could see a healthy mix of Ozuna in there. If he can actually be productive and avoid getting arrested this season, the Braves could be able to trade him. If not, they may finally pull the plug and release him.

Bench

Orlando Arcia

Kevin Pillar

Sam Hilliard

Gone are the days when you had to have a dedicated pinch-hitter on the bench, so this is about covering one's bases. With Grissom projected at short, Arcia becomes the bench infielder and that pushes Ehire Adrianza out. Kevin Pillar has played well this spring, has a good defensive track record, and could fill in at any of the outfield spots if need be.

Sam Hilliard doesn't have any minor league options left, but I am not sure how much that will matter for the bench. Eli White has played really well this spring, but I will bet on Hilliard's tools and strong spring for now despite his past contact issues. This last spot could change and I could see the Braves covering their bases and stashing the guys with minor league options away. Jordan Luplow is still in the conversation as well, but he has a hurt oblique and hasn't played this spring yet, so I am not holding my breath.