Marlins manager praises Braves lineup

This Braves lineup is historically great.

It all starts at the top with Ronald Acuna Jr., who became the first member of the 40/70 club. He’ll be named NL MVP in a few weeks, and his teammate Matt Olson will be right behind him after breaking the franchise record for home runs in a season. Those two have led the Braves from start to finish, but what’s even crazier is they might not even be the scariest sticks in the lineup right now, given Marcell Ozuna’s production since the calendar turned to May.

That doesn’t even mention the likes of Ozzie Albies, Austin Riley, Michael Harris II, Sean Murphy, etc., all of whom have .800+ OPS. They tied the 2019 Twins for most homers in a season, and this wasn’t with juiced balls.

They’re the first team to have a slugging percentage over .500, but what’s most impressive is the balanced approach of the offense. This lineup takes what pitchers give them.

In 2022, the Braves had the third-worst strikeout rate in the league, swinging and missing in 24.6% of their at-bats. This season, they rank fifth, striking out 20.6% of the time.

The media is falling over themselves for the Phillies, who just throttled the Marlins in one of the craziest sports environments I have ever seen in Philadelphia. They’ve got two horses in Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola, but this Braves team is built differently, and they’ve certainly got revenge on their minds.