CARLTON FLETCHER: The frustration of rooting for the Jekyll-Hyde Atlanta Braves

Superstar, you finally made it. But once your picture becomes tainted, it’s what they call the rise and fall.

— Craig David

Editor’s Note: This column was written — obviously — before the Braves’ amazing three-game sweep of the Dodgers. Did that change my attitude? A good bit, but I’m still a little iffy. And, as I note in the column, Chris Sale is a freak of nature. Go Braves.

Because the Philadelphia Phillies’ 9-game win streak ended Monday night while the Atlanta Braves were heading home to face the Los Angeles Dodgers in a three-game series, the Braves will still be in first place in the National League East when the Dodger series ends.

The Braves’ frustrating up-and-down ride on the baseball roller coaster since their incredible start to the season had them looking like one of the greatest teams ever has left them with a precarious lead in the NL East long after pundits had penciled them in as shoo-ins for the division title. But an abysmal June (9-14) showed a glaring chink in the team’s armor, and many of Atlanta’s more pessimistic followers have proclaimed – usually very loudly – that this team will not win the division and may not even make the playoffs.

Anyone who watched the Braves mow opponents down through the season’s first three-plus months would never have believed that the team would find itself on the brink of falling out of first place for the first time this late in the season.

The reasons? Sadly for Braves fans, there are plenty. To wit:

– Ronald Acuna is a hollow shell of the player he was during his recent magical MVP season. One of the game’s great five-tool superstars, Acuna has been reduced to a one-tool player. He is more apt to strike out now than he is to even hit the ball (average), and home runs are little more than wishful thinking (power). Acuna leads the Braves in stolen bases, but he’s been caught stealing – or picked off – almost as often as he’s stolen a base (speed). And his defense has suffered because of injuries. He’s now a one-tool player, still possessing a great arm.

– All this talk about Matt Olson in the running for the MVP award is laughable. Yes, Olson is among the leaders in homers and extra-base hits, but his average has plummeted as his strikeout rate has shot way up.

– Drake Baldwin and Ozzie Albies, after earning All-Star starts with dazzling first-half performances, have come down to earth and are now only mediocre at best at the plate and average in the field.

– And let’s not even talk about Austin Riley. He’s gotten a few hits lately, and when that happens hopeful Braves followers break out the “He’s coming out of it” chant. Even after putting together a few games where he’s actually gotten a hit or two, though, Riley’s still hovering around .220.

– Shortstop has become something of a black hole for the Braves. When Mauricio Dubon is moved into the infield, at least the team has a solid player up the middle. But because Dubon is perhaps one of the two or three most solid players on the team, moving him out of the outfield leaves the team lacking there.

– And pitching? Let’s not even go there. I mean, Chris Sale is amazing, although he could sue the team for non-support, and trade deadline acquisition Tyler Mahle has so far been excellent. But so-so hurlers like Bryce Elder, Grant Holmes and Martin Perez are Jekyll-Hyde from start to start. And closer Raisel Iglesias is becoming as much a liability as he is an asset. 

That leaves one true star – Michael Harris II – carrying more than his share of the load as Atlanta struggles to remain in playoff contention. Harris has been superb both offensively and defensively, and he’s primarily responsible for the team’s tenuous stand atop the NL East.

Walt Weiss has done an excellent job of getting the most out of this mish-mash of potential and potential collapse, but even the most ardent and generous Atlanta fan will admit that the team’s place among baseball’s elite is shaky at best.

The Braves have, of late, held onto first place by the skin of their teeth despite losing series to good teams (the Brewers), mediocre teams (the Twins and Diamondbacks) and really bad teams (the Mets). A recent eight-game win streak proved the team is capable of playing with anybody if the offense performs up to expectation, or the on-again, off-again pitching staff has a couple of up games.

But the Braves team that looked World Series bound in April and May has been replaced by a team that is using smoke and mirrors to hold onto its playoff hopes. I’ve lived and died with the Atlanta team for a lot of years, and this year is even more frustrating in some ways than those woeful teams of the ‘80s. And, even though I hate to say it, count me among those who see this team falling from grace and out of the playoff race.

Email Carlton Fletcher at [email protected].