"I'm tired of the Atlanta Braves winning our division." - JT Realmuto
I didn't say all of these quotes were going to be from Atlanta Braves personnel did I? Sometimes it's good to take the words of your enemies and use them to fuel the fire. The Braves have now one six straight NL East division titles, dating back to 2018.
Not everyone is as thrilled about that as Braves country. Take Philadelphia Phillies catcher JT Realmuto for example. When asked about the chances of breaking Atlanta's division title streak, Realmuto simply responded with how much he has grown tired of the Braves dominance.
While the Phillies have knocked the Braves out of the playoffs the last two seasons, it's clear Philadelphia has a clear goal of knocking Atlanta off their regular season NL East throne as well. Now, it's up to the Braves to make sure that doesn't happen, while perhaps extracting some revenge along the way.
"It's good to be home." - Jesse Chavez
Veteran pitcher Jesse Chavez had to fight back tears when he was asked how it felt to return to Atlanta less than a week ago. Many fans were right there with Chavez, as he has grown into a special place in Braves fans hearts.
"Feels good to be home"
— Bally Sports South (@BallySportsSO) March 25, 2024
Jesse Chavez raves about Brian Snitker and how excited he is to finish his career with @Braves. pic.twitter.com/RFgsCFCoCF
During his first interview since returning, Chavez took a moment to reflect Lon his 16 year big league career, and how his first stint with Atlanta (all the way back in 2010) shaped him into the person he is today. The culture within the Braves locker room is something that also led to Adam Duvall returning to Atlanta just before the start of the regular season.
This figures to be the last dance for the 40 year-old Chavez, so it feels good for him to do it in the place he claims he wants to. Now, Chavez is set to make his final Opening Day roster, long live king Jesse.
"I think that there should be no acceptance of anything less than winning a World Series in this organization." - Spencer Strider
Finally, we end it with the team-wide expectations in the locker room. If you were to survey each player from the Atlanta Braves Opening Day roster, I'd guess you would get 26 answers with the verbiage "World Series or bust."
In fact, if you've been watching the Braves YouTube series Behind the Braves, that's exactly how they ended their behind the scenes content from Atlanta Braves 2024 Spring Training. No one quite captured that notion as well as Atlanta's ace however.
Spencer Strider will give fans some of the most blunt quotes you can think of, and that's a big reason why fans love him so much. The mustached flamethrower claims that Atlanta is the most talented team in baseball, and we are not here to disagree with him.