1. Ronald Acuna Jr. is just heating up
The Atlanta Braves outfielder got on base in Thursday's season finale, but it was his first hit of the series and hopefully a sign of things to come. Acuna is yet to go on a hot streak, and the longer that the Braves play into the postseason, the more inevitable this will become. The outfielder can be an offense unto himself and lives for the big moments, being the ultimate entertainer.
No question, the Braves found a way to eliminate Philly without the best version of the 2023 MVP. Now, it is fair to wonder whether or not Acuna could catch fire at the perfect moment and perhaps help push the Braves to a series upset.
2. Home Run Magic
The final game of the series against Philadelphia had three key shots, with Michael Harris, Ozzie Albies, and Matt Olson all chipping in a deep shot in what was an undeniably magical win. There is no denying that it felt very similar to the 2021 team, when scoring via the deep ball was a defining trait, with huge moments from a handful of hitters coming due to this.
For the Braves, it will be interesting to watch whether or not this was an outlier or a sign of things to come against a Dodgers team that Atlanta played well against in the regular season. Fans can't help but begin to buy into the magic that appears to have started.
3. Rust
Earning the right for extra rest can work against teams, with recent seasons showing that what were considered better rosters getting upset by teams who played in the first round. Atlanta was a victim of this in the 2023 season and now has to hope that this contributes to taking down the two-time defending champs.
The Dodgers hitters sitting at home while the pitchers are going to be on extra rest hopefully upsets the routine and gives Atlanta an early edge in the series. It at least is going to work in Atlanta's favor enough to give the team a chance to catch the Dodgers off guard early in the series.
4. Wear
We've seen before in different leagues the difficulty of maintaining a championship window when you're playing so much more in comparison to the rest of the league. The Kansas City Chiefs in the NFL stand out as an example of a dynastic run that collapsed a season ago with injuries and wear clearly catching up to the franchise.
Perhaps the most notable example of this is the Golden State Warriors in the late 2010s, as the NBA franchise went on a historic run. One that fell apart due to injuries and a tired roster, while we are only two years in for the Dodgers, the expectations are high, and there has to be some sense of hope that this will work in Atlanta's favor.
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