After the 76-86 season, it’s understandable that Atlanta is aggressive as they try to get back into contention and make the most of it. Ronald Acuna Jr.under club control for the remaining years. Bringing back Iglesias and adding Suarez to a bullpen that already existed Dylan Lee And Aaron Bummer in the mix at the end of the inning will certainly provide Atlanta with one of the most intimidating bullpens in the league, and a full season from Kim should also be very impactful as the Braves relied on Nick Allen as their shortstop for most of the 2025 season. That in itself could be a facelift for the offense Austin Riley, Michael Harris IIAnd Ozzie Albies are playing closer to their potential than last year, but the additions of Yastrzemski and Dubon should be able to provide more established backup plans than the team had last year to keep the offense afloat.
As strong as the bullpen and offense appear to be right now, they weren’t the part of the team that hindered the Braves the most last year. It’s hard to argue that the team’s biggest weakness last year was its starting rotation, despite the elite talent it possesses on paper. Chris Sales won a Cy Young award in 2024 and spent much of 2025 eyeing a repeat. Spencer Strider was widely regarded as perhaps the game’s most exciting young arm just a few years ago. Spencer Schellenbach has done nothing but perform since his big league debut, and Reynaldo López has been brilliant since returning to the rotation after years in the bullpen.
Unfortunately, each of these pitchers spent a lot of time on the injured list last year. Lopez made just one start, while Schwellenbach and Sale combined for a measly 37 starts. Strider made 24 starts but didn’t quite look like himself when he returned from UCL surgery, posting a below-average 4.45 ERA and a 24.3% strikeout rate well below his usual standards. That mediocre production still made Strider one of the more reliable pitchers in the Atlanta rotation for much of the year, as injuries increasingly demanded more starts for depth weapons like Bryce Elder, Grant HolmesAnd Joey Wentz.
A lot can go wrong during one rotation in one year. With as much talent in that rotation as the Braves have, it wouldn’t be a shock if their starters were among the best in baseball next year. Sale remains a likely future Hall of Famer who should be among the elite if healthy. Schwellenbach has a career 3.23 ERA with peripherals to match. Strider could easily regain his Cy Young-caliber form the further he gets away from surgery, and Lopez himself picked up Cy Young votes in 2024 for his work as a starter. At the same time, the health of starting pitchers is less reliable than ever, and assuming any of those players will make 30 starts could prove foolhardy. It hardly seems like a coincidence that Atlanta’s starting rotation lacked consistency in the first year after the loss Max Friedone of the most reliable innings-eaters in all of sport. While depth types like Holmes and Elder remain on the roster to pick up the slack, they certainly weren’t enough last year.
This makes the addition of a high-quality, reliable starter an obvious choice. The market for starters has been fairly quiet so far, apart from a major addition Dylan stops in November, and there are still many options on the market. Someone like Framber Valdez or Ranger Suarez might give a fair idea of the stability Fried provided at the top of the Braves rotation for years, but Atlanta doesn’t necessarily have to aim that high. Even adding an arm like Zac Gallen or Luke Giolito would go a long way toward providing reliable innings to the rotation, and those types of deals could be more affordable than the nine-figure contracts that players like Valdez and Suarez want.
While signing a starter would make sense, there is some opportunity cost involved. That’s because right-handed Hurston Waldrep has the chance to be a major x-factor if he gets the chance to start. After a rough debut in 2024, the team’s best pitcher enjoyed a strong run of ten appearances in 2025, pitching to a 2.88 ERA over 56 1/3 innings of work. Waldrep doesn’t turn 24 until March and could be an exciting addition to the rotation if given the chance, but that opportunity may only be available to him if the team doesn’t sign a starter. Of course, the team’s uncertain health prospects for the rest of the rotation provide a reasonable counterargument to that; Waldrep may not have to wait long before he lands a rotation spot, even if on paper he is pushed out of the team’s starting five.
Perhaps the biggest obstacle for the team to land a reliable starter is payroll. Atlanta is currently projecting a luxury tax salary of $256 million Grid source. That’s a jump of about $40 million from last year, though it’s actually about $20 million less than what Atlanta put forward in 2024. If the Braves are willing to stay aggressive and continue spending until that 2024 level, adding someone like Giolito to the mix might be feasible. However, if that doesn’t work out, the Braves will likely have to turn to the trade market to add an impactful starter. Doing so will likely mean giving up young talent (such as Waldrep or infielder). Nacho Alvarez Jr.) that the team seems reluctant to part with. Lower level beginners love it Jose Quintana And Zack Littell They could also be options, but it is an open question whether they would be substantially more effective than internal options like Waldrep or even Holmes.
How do MLBTR readers think Atlanta will construct their rotation heading into the 2026 season? Will they make a surefire addition like Valdez or Giolito, or will they instead enter the season with more or less the same group they have now? Have your say in the poll below:
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