Ranking the Atlanta Braves’ top priorities entering the offseason

A dismal 2025 campaign has mercifully come to an end, as the Braves missed the playoffs for the first time since 2018. Almost everything that could go wrong did go wrong, and a pivotal offseason awaits.

As of now, the future of Brian Snitker remains uncertain. I’ll leave him out of this offseason discussion for the moment, but it’s possible the Braves’ first order of business is finding a new manager, a move that would only add more intrigue to what promises to be a busy winter for Alex Anthopoulos.

6. Trade Aaron Bummer

This might feel like an odd place to start, but moves like this matter. Aaron Bummer hasn’t been bad in his two seasons with Atlanta, but his restructured contract jumps from $3.5 million in 2025 to $9.5 million in 2026 — steep for a long reliever who can’t be trusted in high-leverage situations. With Reynaldo López and Grant Holmes potentially shifting back to the bullpen, moving off Bummer’s salary should be a priority to free up resources for bigger additions.

5. Extend Ha-Seong Kim

Ideally, Ha-Seong Kim picks up his $16 million player option, but his strong final month may tempt him to test a weak free-agent market. Anthopoulos should make his decision easy by offering a one- or two-year extension now. The Braves have no major-league-ready shortstops in the system, and bridging the gap with a reliable veteran like Kim is a no-brainer.

4. Add an Outfielder/DH

With Marcell Ozuna hitting free agency, Atlanta must add a bat, preferably a DH who can also play the outfield. That would allow Ronald Acuña Jr. to DH more often, something the Braves must consider given his injury history.

3. Extend Chris Sale

No player makes more sense for an extension than Chris Sale. He’s been the best pitcher in baseball since arriving in Atlanta, a tremendous clubhouse presence, and clearly enjoys being here. The Braves should not let him enter the final year of his contract with free agency looming. Injury risk is always a factor with pitchers, but Sale is worth the gamble.

2. Overhaul the Bullpen

Much of this bullpen makeover can be handled internally — Joe Jiménez should return, and López and Holmes could be deployed as relievers — but Anthopoulos still needs to add multiple high-leverage arms, including a closer with Raisel Iglesias likely gone. This isn’t an area where the Braves can afford to go bargain-hunting again, as they did this year. A slightly bigger investment in relief pitching could have dramatically altered 2025’s outcome.

1. Starting Pitching, Starting Pitching, Starting Pitching

Atlanta enters the offseason with more questions than answers in the rotation. Chris Sale and Spencer Schwellenbach form an elite one-two punch, and Hurston Waldrep showed promise late in the season, but beyond that there’s little certainty.

The Braves hope Spencer Strider will regain form as he moves further from InternalBrace surgery, and perhaps López can stick as a starter, but banking on injured pitchers to rebound is risky. Anthopoulos’ reluctance to spend on frontline starters has hurt Atlanta in recent years — that has to change. The Braves cannot go into 2026 without acquiring at least one proven starter.

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