The Atlanta Braves in 2026- So Far , So Good

With 8% of the vote in, the projected winner is.....

Those annoying, way- too-early election night projections are an utter waste of time. And so it is with a new baseball season. In a sport with a regular season that stretches out for 162 games, the first 13 usually don't mean much.

( though occasionally, those first 13 mean everything. See Atlanta Braves circa 1982, who won their first 13, then played basically .500 baseball the rest of the way to eke out a division crown).

Still, at 8-5 through the first two weeks of 2026, the Braves show some promise. There are several examples.

1) they've shown some offensive resourcefulness with a few newbies and an version of Drake Baldwin that's even more productive than his ROY year in 2025.

2) the injury bug, while still a problem, is not near as evil as it was spring of last year.

3) there's a spirit and a vitality about this club that's been missing over the last season or two. As of last week, the face of that vigor might well be that of new manager Walt Weiss , frozen in our mind's eye as he put a classic form tackle on Jorge Soler after Soler charged the mound to get at Braves' pitcher Reynaldo Lopez in a game against the Angels.

Lots of managers would have the urge to protect their pitcher, but few, if any would have the moxie- or the technique– to do what Weiss did. ( as an example, it's hard to imagine Brian Snitker attempting to go all Butkus on an opposing player, right?)

If the Braves win at this pace through the year, they'll finish with 99 wins, almost certainly a playoff participant. That's still a big if, because some of their key offensive cogs have been slow out of the gate.

To name a few:

Ronald Acuna ( batting .204, with no homers),​ Austin Riley ( .200, no homers) and Michael Harris ( .203 with one home run)​ represent a big piece of the team's offensive attack. They need to get it going.

On the flipside, the pitching has been exceptional. Los Bravos lead MLB with an ERA around 2.00. Outstanding!

What's more, they've done it without Spencer Strider or Spencer Schwellenbach...and WITH Bryce Elder, who has yet to give up an earned run.

So the overall feeling is one of optimism, with good reason- which still doesn't prove a thing. But if the Braves pull off a successful season, be ready to hear players cite:

..the night

Walt Weiss

brought might

to the fight.

Patrick Conarro

RamblinSports