ATLANTA — The Atlanta Braves own MLB’s best record heading into the second half of the season. They were the first team to hit 60 wins, and they’re still waiting for their 30th loss of the year.
They finished up the first half on a strong note, winning two out of three in Tampa against the Rays, the team they surpassed for the best record in the league. They’ve only lost six games since June 1, and they’ve shown no signs of slowing down.
Now the Braves are looking to continue their strong play through the end of the regular season and collecting their seventh first-place finish in the NL East in the past seven years.
On the latest episode of Locked On Braves, host Jake Mastroianni and guest Grant McAuley previewed the Braves’ second-half schedule and focused on the stretch of games to end the month of July.
“Pretty tough schedule to end July just four games against teams under .500.” Mastroianni said. “Three of those are against the White Sox.”
But in August, things get easier for the Braves, who have 16 games scheduled against teams who are under .500, including two series against the New York Mets, who currently sit in fourth place in the NL East with a 42-48 record. Of course, things can change when the two teams meet from August 11-13 and again from August 21-23.
While this stretch might be “easy” on paper because of the records of their opponents, the Braves will be playing 14 games in 13 days thanks to a doubleheader against the Mets in Citi Field on August 12.
They’re also ending the month with a game against the Dodgers in Los Angeles to start a four-game set that finishes September 3. The Braves have 73 games left, 36 against teams under .500 and 37 against teams who are above .500.
Mastroianni said, “So that’s what we have left, not a terribly daunting schedule for the Braves, who already put themselves in a pretty good position.” They have those seven games against the Mets, three more against the Marlins, and seven more against the Phillies before the season ends.
The Braves are in control in the second half, and the division is theirs to lose. But barring an epic collapse, it looks like they’ll take that seventh division title in seven years when all is said and done because they’re currently eight and a half games ahead of the second-place Marlins, 12 ahead of the Phillies and 18 and a half ahead of the Mets.
Mastroianni asked McAuley which second-half storylines he was looking forward to following, and he answered, “Ronald Acuña Jr.”
Acuña Jr is having his best season since 2019, when he finished fifth in the National League MVP vote. He already has 21 home runs and is batting .331/.408/.582 with 55 runs batted in. Last season, Acuña Jr. had 51 runs batted in, and that was in 119 games. So far in 2023, he’s played in 89. He also has 41 stolen bases and a good chance of joining the exclusive 40/40 club.
As for his sown second-half storyline to look out for, Mastroianni picked the health of Max Fried. Fried has been working his way back from a forearm injury that he suffered in early May, and he is scheduled to make a rehab start for High-A Rome. He made his first rehab start before the break with Triple-A Gwinnett and threw 35 pitches. They’re hoping he reaches 50 this weekend.
The Braves are already playing well, but adding Max Fried into the mix down the stretch can put them over the top.
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