Which Braves unsung hero is your favorite?

The Braves have been led by their stars through the first six weeks of the season.

Matt Olson would probably take home NL MVP honors if the season ended today, leading all of baseball in WAR. Ozzie Albies looks headed toward his fourth All-Star appearance, and there’s a good chance he’ll be joined by Michael Harris II, Drake Baldwin, Chris Sale, and several others.

But seasons like this don’t happen on star power alone.

For every Olson moonshot or Sale masterclass, there’s been some random dude turning into Barry Bonds for a week or a pitcher nobody trusted two months ago suddenly throwing like an ace. Every great baseball team has a few of those stories over the course of a season.

The Braves already have about seven of them, and it’s only May.

So which one has been your favorite? Let’s discuss.

Dominic Smith

Smith has cooled off considerably since his absurd start, and when we look up in September, there’s a decent chance he’s no longer even on the roster. But he’s still hitting well north of .300 with four homers and an .876 OPS, and more importantly, nobody is ever forgetting those two game-winning hits that felt like they completely jump-started this season.

Momentum in baseball is a weird thing. Teams catch fire out of nowhere, confidence snowballs, and suddenly everybody starts believing. The Braves are not sitting where they are right now without Dominic Smith.

Bryce Elder

Come on, man.

Before the season started, I would’ve bet good money Elder was getting designated for assignment at some point this year simply because he was out of options.

Instead, he is heading towards another All-Star appearance.

Through six weeks, he leads Braves pitchers in WAR, ERA, and ERA+. And unlike 2023 — when it constantly felt like the wheels were about to come off — this version actually looks sustainable because of the changes he’s made to his arsenal.

Martín Pérez

The Braves basically picked Pérez up off the street, and they even designated him for assignment earlier in the season. Despite that, he’s still hanging around and has been a pivotal part of what the club has accomplished through the first six weeks.

Through six appearances (four starts), Pérez owns a 2.22 ERA, 184 ERA+ and a WHIP south of 1.000.

And the funniest part?

Those numbers are somehow only good enough for third place in the Braves rotation right now.

Dylan Lee

Lee has been so consistently dominant for so long that he probably shouldn’t even be on this list. Every season he just quietly goes about humiliating hitters while nobody outside of Atlanta notices.

He’s off to another ridiculous start, carrying a 1.02 ERA and cartoonish 405 ERA+ over a league-leading 18 appearances. At some point, we probably need to stop acting surprised and start acknowledging Lee for what he is — one of the best left-handed relievers on the planet.

Mauricio Dubón

The Houston Astros were preparing to non-tender Dubón before deciding to send him to Atlanta for the cheaper Nick Allen.

That trade barely made a ripple nationally, yet it’s probably already been worth four or five wins to the Atlanta Braves. His versatility has become invaluable with all the injuries this roster has dealt with, and offensively, he’s producing at a level well beyond anything he’s shown previously, posting what would easily be a career-best OPS.

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