Heading into the second half of the season, the biggest question mark facing the Atlanta Braves is how to piece together a rotation. The Braves have lost Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver, and Reynaldo Lopez. It is unclear whether or not Lopez could return in the 2025 season; however, Smith-Shawver is done for the season and for much of the 2026 season as well. Sale and Schwellenbach are both weeks away from potential returns and will need time to stretch out again after sitting on the shelf for so long. This leaves Atlanta leaning on Spencer Strider, Grant Holmes, and Bryce Elder.
After this trio, the Braves have zero reliable options, already making the mistake of elevating Didier Fuentes far too soon. The twenty-year-old pitcher was put in an unfair position by an organization that was beyond desperate for capable production. Fuentes has since been demoted, and the Braves resorted to starting reliever Aaron Bummer attempting to piece together bullpen games. This isn't going to be a viable strategy going forward for an organization that has already exhausted its limited depth.
The Braves Must Find Innings Eaters
Atlanta's best path is ignoring the standings and looking to the trade market to find starting pitching. This isn't suggesting the team spend top prospects or look to become one of the contenders for a top arm. Rather, the organization's current level of desperation demands a change, and this should result in the Braves searching for struggling or cheap veteran additions. Whether it is aging former stars looking to stick in a rotation or underachieving pieces falling out of contending rotations, there are plenty of potentially cheap options.
This is the path the Braves should take to save the bullpen and put less stress on injured starters to return. It will also allow you to have a more rested bullpen and lessen the pressure on Strider and Holmes, who are carrying a lot of weight in each start. Atlanta needs to make moves to set the team up for 2026, including adding to a rotation that is completely out of options.
Even Gwinnett is out of potential starters with young pitchers struggling and Ian Anderson on the shelf. Bryce Elder was the one reasonable innings-eater Atlanta could promote, and this move was made long ago. This is both a reminder of the lack of depth the team brought in and a reminder of a farm system that has been sacrificed to go all in on a window of contention. With this in mind, the Braves must do what it takes to find innings eaters to help the team make it through the second half.