The Atlanta Braves have become an out-and-out powerhouse in the MLB, as they have been one of the best teams in the league ever since they broke through from their rut in 2018. They have an assortment of riches up and down the roster, and that includes their extremely talented starting rotation. At this point, health permitting, the first four rotation spots for the Braves will be taken by Spencer Strider, Max Fried, Charlie Morton, and the newly-acquired Chris Sale.
This leaves the fifth rotation spot up for grabs for a slew of pitchers who will want to break camp as a member of the team's vaunted collection of arms. At present, there are two strong candidates to take that spot — Bryce Elder and Reynaldo Lopez. It looks like Elder should have inside crack at doing so, since he started 31 games and pitched in 174.2 innings in 2023. But the 24-year old is relishing the competition that Lopez, the man the Braves signed to a three-year, $30 million deal, is bringing.
“I think [the competition] is good for me honestly. You know coming into it, you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do to make the team. I don’t know if the word is stressful. But you’ve got to go and I think that is a positive because you’ve got to keep moving forward,” Elder said, per Mark Bowman of MLB.com.
This is a great mindset for a player as young as Bryce Elder to have. Elder could have acted all entitled after playing such a huge role in the Braves' success last season, but he knows that nothing is given and that he should not take his rotation spot for granted.
Elder began last season in the minors, so he knows that circumstances don't always go the way one wants them to. But the 24-year old also knows that he was still able to pitch his way into the rotation for good despite this minor setback.
Whenever a team becomes a powerhouse, players know that the standard to remain a fixture in the starting lineup or in the rotation is way higher, and it's good that Bryce Elder is embracing this with open arms.
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