These stats make the Braves record even more bewildering

Despite having a positive run differential, the Braves somehow find themselves 11 games under .500 entering the second half of the season. They are 9.5 games back of a playoff spot, and their World Series aspirations from the start of the season have all but vanished.

It’s been a baffling decline. The Braves’ offense, once historically elite, has inexplicably become their biggest weakness in the span of just two seasons — a transformation that nobody inside the clubhouse seems able to explain.

What makes Atlanta’s struggles even more mystifying is the performance of their pitching staff, which has quietly been one of the best in baseball. As Michael Charles of The Athletic notes:

Atlanta Braves (42-53)
9.4 K/9 (2nd)

Without quality pitching, an underwhelming season for the Braves could have been a downright disaster. Atlanta’s pitching has allowed the fifth-fewest hits in baseball, is tied for the fourth-most quality starts, and ranks second with 878 strikeouts.

Even more amazing, the Braves pitching staff has been able to produce these results in spite of the fact that the team’s five best starters have missed significant time.

Spencer Strider began the season on the IL and has missed about six weeks. Reynaldo Lopez made just one start before being shutdown indefinitely. AJ Smith-Shawver underwent Tommy John surgery after nine starts. Chris Sale has missed the last month with a fractured rib cage, and Spencer Schwellenbach recently joined his teammates after suffering a fractured elbow.

Still, the Braves have managed to get quality innings from their rotation, only to be repeatedly let down by an offense that has completely lost its identity.

“Even with their pitching prowess, the Braves remain 11 games under .500 because they haven’t hit to their standard,” Charles continues. “Atlanta ranks 24th in runs scored, 21st in batting average and 20th in hits.”

There’s a lot of finger pointing going on in Atlanta, but nobody can blame the Braves’ pitching staff. Without them, we could be talking about a club that’s closer to 20 games under .500 rather than 10.