Atlanta Sports category interest

As the first half draws to a close, the Atlanta Braves face roster upgrade decisions that could impact the remainder of the season.

Of course, most of those decisions are likely to come at the end of the month with the arrival of Major League Baseball’s trade deadline on July 30.

There is no need more glaring than adding some reinforcements to the Atlanta outfield mix.

Setting off a string of events reminiscent of 2021, the Braves once again lost star right fielder Ronald Acuña Jr. to a torn ACL. To make matters worse, center fielder Michael Harris II landed on the injured list after he suffered a Grade 2 hamstring strain just two weeks later, further depleting the Braves outfield.

That adversity created an opportunity for newcomer Jarred Kelenic to take over at the top of the batting order, a move that has paid dividends for Atlanta.

Kelenic has batted .304 with six home runs while posting a .900 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) in 25 games last month. He upped that production to a .328 average with a .980 OPS in 15 games since taking over the leadoff spot.

“I’m just having fun with these guys,” Kelenic told Bally Sports. “I feel like we have such a good group top to bottom, and I wake up and look forward to coming to the ballpark each and every day. I look forward to doing whatever I can to help win that night with these guys.”

While Kelenic is thriving in his new home, the other half of the Braves’ original left field platoon has seemingly been fighting for every hit this season.

Adam Duvall has called Atlanta home several times before but is off to the slowest start of his career.

The 33-year-old outfielder re-signed with Atlanta at the very end of spring training and has not been able to get his season on track. Carrying a .169 batting average into play on Tuesday, Duvall’s struggles are almost exclusively against right-handers.

The righty-hitting slugger is batting a paltry .094 while being held homerless with 41 strikeouts in 99 plate appearances against righty pitching this season.

That is a far cry from his solid work against lefties, against whom he is batting .265 with six home runs and a .518 slugging percentage in 110 plate appearances.

Duvall is currently in his third stint with the Braves. He was originally acquired in a 2018 trade deadline deal, struggled as the Braves’ fourth outfielder and was left off the postseason roster that October.

The following season, Duvall slugged his way back from Triple-A and provided a midsummer boost to the Braves lineup and delivered a key postseason home run.

After contributing to Atlanta’s 2020 run to the National League Championship Series, Duvall signed a free-agent deal with the Miami Marlins only to return to Atlanta in another trade deadline swap which preceded the Braves’ run to a World Series championship in 2021.

A wrist injury ended Duvall’s 2022 campaign in July, after which he signed with the Boston Red Sox. Though he suffered another wrist injury last season, Duvall finished up with a .245 average with 21 home runs among 45 extra-base hits in just 92 games for Boston.

Unsigned all winter, Duvall’s path led back to Atlanta in March.

Though the highlights have been fewer and further between this time around, Duvall lifted the Braves to a 2-1 victory in 10 innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday.

“It felt good finally to come through for the team,” Duvall told Bally Sports following his walk-off hit to beat the Pirates. “I’ve been grinding a little bit, so to be able to do that felt good.”

Veteran Ramon Laureano has supplied some depth for Atlanta’s outfield situation but missed the entire Pittsburgh series while battling back soreness. He was signed to a minor-league deal after the Cleveland Guardians cut him loose at the end of May.

Brian Anderson was another in-season addition for the Braves. He signed as a free agent on June 4 but appeared in just three games before landing on the injured list with a bacterial infection.

Though Alex Anthopoulos has added what pieces he can over the first three months, a general manager’s best opportunity to enhance his club typically comes at the trade deadline. That has long been the decision point for clubs when it comes to both buying and selling.

Anthopoulos famously swung multiple trades leading into the 2021 deadline in order to rebuild the entire Atlanta outfield. Duvall came back over from Miami. Jorge Soler was acquired from the Kansas City Royals and Eddie Rosario was brought in from the Guardians. That trio joined forces with Joc Pederson, who’d been picked up in an earlier trade with the Chicago Cubs.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Rosario was recently designated for assignment by the division rival Washington Nationals after batting just .183 with seven home runs in 67 games this season. Pederson is batting .283 with 10 homers for the Arizona Diamondbacks while Soler joined the San Francisco Giants after two years with Miami and will bring his .230 average and nine home runs into play against the Braves at Truist Park on Tuesday.

While reunions can be an entertaining thought and a popular route to reinforcing the roster, Anthopoulos will no doubt cast a wider net for help this time around.

One hurdle every general manager may have to clear is the effects MLB’s expanded playoff field will have on the available player pool when it comes time to make trades.

As of Sunday, the Braves, San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals held the three wild card spots in the National League. However, seven other clubs were within five games of the third and final entry.

Over in the American League, things are a bit less unsettled. The New York Yankees, Minnesota Twins and Kansas City Royals sit atop the wild card standings with only the Red Sox, Houston Astros, and Tampa Bay Rays within four games of a playoff berth.

While all of the aforementioned clubs have flaws and needs, the sheer amount of wild card hopefuls across MLB could complicate matters on the trade market by discouraging teams to give up on their postseason chances with two full months remaining in the season. It could also drive up the asking price of the available talent for those teams looking to sell off parts and restock their farm systems.