The Atlanta Braves are 3-2 to begin the new season. It has been an up and down start for a ball club that has battled no shortage of uncertainty with a number of injuries. There are reasons for optimism, however.
Without further ado, here are three Braves takeaways from their first five games of the season.
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Baldwin won the National League Rookie of the Year following a strong 2025 season. Some wondered if he’d endure a sophomore slump or if he would be able to continue to find success in 2026.
The catcher has not had any problems through the first five games of the new campaign. Baldwin is currently hitting .263 to go along with a 1.101 OPS and three home runs. He has three RBIs as well.
It isn’t every day that a true offensive catcher emerges on a team, but the Braves seem to have found a star at the position.
Discussing one potential X-factor is a common topic before most seasons in any team sport. The Braves, however, may have multiple X-factors on the roster.
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Mauricio Dubon, who is handling shortstop amid Ha-Seong Kim’s injury, is hitting .429 so far in 2026. Dominic Smith already has a home run, while Mike Yastrzemski has a .385 batting average. On the pitching side, Didier Fuentes has pitched well.
Given all of the injuries on the roster, Atlanta is going to need a number of X-factors to step up alongside the star players. It seems as if that will not be a problem.
The starting pitching has been hit hard by the injury bug. Spencer Strider, Spencer Schwellenbach, Joey Wentz and Hurston Waldrep are among the starters who are currently out due to injuries.
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However, the starting pitching may still be okay.
Braves fans know that Chris Sale is a star. Reynaldo Lopez and Grant Holmes both gave Atlanta opportunities to win in their first outings. Bryce Elder looked strong in his first start as well.
Sure, Atlanta’s starting pitching still has questions. It will not be at its best given all of the injuries. With that being said, the starting pitching may not be a complete disaster either. As long as the starting pitchers perform well enough to keep the team in games, the talented all-around lineup will handle the rest.