5 things to watch for the Braves this season

Chris Sale is an ace, yes, but behind him the trio of Grant Holmes, Bryce Elder and Reynaldo López (in any order) have a lot to prove when it comes to consistency and performance. And since the Braves already lost Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep to elbow injuries, Joey Wentz to a torn ACL and Spencer Strider to an oblique injury, the pressure on the rotation’s top four arms only increases.

Then there is the team’s fifth spot in the rotation. Will Didier Fuentes or JR Ritchie have a breakout season? Can José Suarez or Martín Pérez be serviceable long enough to provide a lift early on?

How the entirety of this group performs, or whether it’s even the group the Braves ride with through all 162, will largely determine the Braves’ degree of success in ’26.

2. Health

No MLB team is without injury issues, but the Braves do seem to be a bit snakebitten in that area, especially the last couple seasons. Shoot, one Braves player — Ha-Seong Kim — was injured in the offseason when slipping on ice.

The Braves could use some good luck on the injury front. They need their everyday regulars to stay out of the training room. First-year manager Walt Weiss is mindful of that, indicating he’ll give players a day off here, an at-bat off there.

Furthermore, the Braves just simply cannot afford any more serious injuries to their prime pitchers, whether that’s the front of the rotation or back end of the bullpen. If the Braves stay healthy, many pundits say they will compete for an NL East title. If not …

3. The offense

On paper, it looks really nice.

A former MVP in Ronald Acuña Jr., hitting leadoff. Former rookies of the year Michael Harris II toward the bottom of the order and Drake Baldwin in the No. 2 hole. A healthy Austin Riley. Three-time All-Star Matt Olson.

That’s a good-looking group of hitters. Anything Ozzie Albies, Mauricio Dubón and/or Mike Yastrzemski can provide will be a bonus.

Then there’s the notion that the Braves will be running wild (at times, anyway). Putting men in motion on the basepaths, the Braves hope, will lead to more scoring opportunities and, ultimately, more runs.

4. The bullpen

The Braves are excited about their bullpen, and rightly so.

Not only is closer Raisel Iglesias back, but the addition of Robert Suárez (an All-Star closer in his own right) gives the Braves quite a 1-2 punch in the eighth and ninth innings. Ahead of that duo, the Braves can turn to Dylan Lee, Aaron Bummer, Tyler Kinley and Joel Payamps.

On nights when the Braves are trying to hold a late lead, there should be a great deal of confidence the pen can keep that lead intact.

5. The return

The Braves have quite a list of players on the injured list. That’s the bad news.

The good news is those players could rejoin the big-league club at some point over the next few months. In theory, the return of some (or all) of those players could strengthen the team’s push for the postseason this summer.

Pitcher Spencer Strider might be back in April, shortstop Kim (finger) and catcher Sean Murphy (hip) might be back in May and pitcher Schwellenbach could resurface in June or July. Granted, those are hopeful timelines for recovery, but none of those players are expected to be lost for the entirety of the season.

If the Braves are in contention toward the end of July, they might not need to go all in with a flashy trade at the deadline if they’re confident their wounded warriors can step in and lead the charge toward a pennant.