The Atlanta Braves were the best team in the MLB for pretty much the entire 2023 campaign. Unfortunately, that didn't serve them much good in the postseason, where they were eliminated by the Philadelphia Phillies in four games in their NLDS series. For the second straight year, a season full of so much potential will see the Braves come up short in crushing fashion.
If it weren't for an outrageous double play from Michael Harris II in Game 2, the Braves probably would have gotten swept in this series. Their lineup had no answers for the Phillies dominant pitching staff, and while their own pitching wasn't totally atrocious, it wasn't good enough to get the job done here.
The Braves will head back to the drawing board this offseason now and try to find a way to capitalize off their regular season success and put together deeper playoff runs. But first, let's look back at this series and pick out three Braves players that are most to blame for their disappointing season-ending defeat in the NLDS against the Phillies.
3. Ronald Acuna Jr.
Ronald Acuna Jr. is fresh off one of the most impressive regular season campaigns of all time. Acuna was an all-around force all season long (.337 BA, 41 HR, 106 RBI, 73 SB, 1.012 OPS) and will very likely end up winning the National League MVP award. And despite all that, Acuna was practically invisible for this whole series against the Phillies.
In the quick four-game series against Philadelphia here, Acuna went just 2/14 at the plate, drawing a pair of walks, scoring three runs, and stealing two bases in the process. While those aren't the worst numbers the world has ever seen, the drop off in production from Acuna is extremely hard to miss. He went from being the best player in the National League to nonexistent in no time at all.
This continues a concerning trend of postseason struggles for Acuna, and it is worth noting that he wasn't even healthy for Atlanta's World Series run back in 2021. Acuna still is only 25 years old and has time to grow into a postseason star, but it was disappointing to see Acuna fall short of expectations in the playoffs once again.
2. Bryce Elder
After sneaking out of Game 2 with a victory, Braves manager Brian Snitker made a somewhat interesting decision to hand the ball to Bryce Elder in Game 3. Elder was solid in 20230 and even earned his first All-Star selection (12-4, 3.81 ERA, 128 K, 1.28 WHIP), but he largely coasted off of a strong start to the season before falling apart as the campaign dragged on.
Sure enough, Elder was tagged by the Phillies (2.2 IP, 5 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 4 K), ensuring the Braves would lose the game before they really even had a shot to get into it. Snitker's decision to roll with Elder backfired in spectacular fashion, and while you can make an argument Elder should have never been put in this position, if you get the call, you have to go out and deliver.
It's tough to get too down on Elder since his arm is likely gassed from his first full season in the majors, but it wasn't great to see him completely wilt under pressure in Game 3. Elder has a lot of positive momentum to build off of, but it's clear that he wasn't ready for the bright lights that came attached to the biggest game of Atlanta's season at the time.
1. Orlando Arcia
It's a shame that Orlando Arcia's first All-Star campaign of his career isn't going to get remembered for what he accomplished. Arcia thrived in a full-time role at shortstop with the Braves as their replacement for Dansby Swanson (.264 BA, 17 HR, 65 RBI, .741 OPS), but he may have single-handedly caused Atlanta to lose this series, and it was something that didn't even take place on the field.
Arcia wasn't particularly effective on the field (2/13, 1 BB, 1 RBI), but his comments after Game 2, in which he was caught taunting Bryce Harper for his game-ending baserunning mistake, clearly provided the Phillies a spark after one of their toughest losses of the season. Regardless of your thoughts on the journalistic integrity of this whole situation, it's clear that Arcia made a mistake.
Of course, Arcia can't make his teammates go out and produce, but you can never afford to give your opponent bulletin board material at this point of the season. Arcia's mistake provided Philadelphia all the juice they needed to close out this series in front of their home fans, and at the end of the day, he deserves the most blame for this crushing outcome.
Follow Us
Subscribe