Are Braves prepping for a youth movement in the second half?

At 40-52, 10 games out of a playoff spot, and crippled by injuries — the Atlanta Braves’ season is over. Their streak of seven straight postseason appearances will come to an end, and all the focus should be on figuring out what needs to be done to get back to the standard in 2026.

A big part of that is seeing if guys like Michael Harris II and Ozzie Albies can have resurgences in the second half of the season. Taking a step back is one thing, but they aren’t even playing like major-leaguers right now. There are a slew of players across the minors that could put up better offensive numbers than the ones we’ve seen from Harris and Albies in 2025.

These are two players that were once thought to be fixtures in Atlanta for the foreseeable future, but that can no longer be taken for granted. They should legitimately be playing for their jobs over the final two-and-a-half months.

Additionally, Braves Country could get a look at a lot of new faces, especially after the trade deadline. With the rotation only featuring two (maybe three) major-league arms right now, Didier Fuentes was just the first of several young starting pitchers that could make their way to Atlanta, and a couple were recently promoted to Gwinnett this week.

A second-round pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, Blake Burkhalter didn’t make his professional debut until 2024 due to Tommy John surgery. But he put together a really solid season last year and has followed it up with a 3.13 ERA in 14 starts this season for AA Columbus before being promoted. Burkhalter has a four-pitch mix, highlighted by his high-90s heater that we could see as early as this season.

Additionally, the Braves also promoted 2024 seventh-round pick Brett Sears to Gwinnett. A real eye-popping transaction, considering Sears had not even pitched professionally until this season and began the year in low-A Augusta. That’s a meteoric rise that’s become commonplace in the Braves farm system. They’ve never been afraid to push their young arms through the ranks quickly, and given Sears is already 25-years-old, he could get a shot if he continues to shove like he has been in Gwinnett.

The rotation, however, is far from the only place we could see an influx of young talent. There are two relief arms — Hayden Harris and Jhancarlos Lars, both of whom were promoted to Gwinnett earlier this season — that could join the Braves, most likely after the trade deadline. Nacho Alvarez is also a name to watch. There’s not much more he can prove at the AAA level, and with Ozzie Albies struggling, it’s possible the Braves look at Alvarez as the second baseman of the future.