Can the Braves Win With Just Two Starters? The 2024 Dodgers Say Yes

The Braves’ paper-thin rotation is the result of two things: Alex Anthopoulos not adding anybody in free agency, and injuries. It left the club with only three healthy starting pitchers on the roster coming into October, and after five games, it’s fair to say they really only have two — Chris Sale and Tyler Mahle.

Grant Holmes has made two relief appearances but hasn’t provided much length, failing to even complete an inning in Sunday’s win over the Dodgers. It’s evident the Braves don’t trust him very much, and the odds of that changing as the competition ramps up are highly unlikely.

So can Atlanta really keep this going with just Sale and Mahle? Recent history suggests it’s possible, with the 2024 Los Angeles Dodgers serving as a very comparable example.

“The Dodgers two years ago. Remember? … Their starting pitching was decimated by injuries and they had all these relievers step up and absorb a lot of innings, exactly where the Braves are right now,” MLB insider Buster Olney pointed out in a recent interview with 680 The Fan. “This has been done before. You can win with two starting pitchers, three starting pitchers in the postseason if you have a lights-out bullpen.”

It’s ironic the Dodgers had to navigate an entire postseason with just two reliable starting pitchers, because they’d spent a ton on starting pitching. They all just happened to be unavailable once the postseason arrived, which forced their bullpen to cover 57.8% of the innings during their 2024 World Series run.

So not only can it happen, but this is how baseball has shifted dramatically over the years. Sure, the current-day Dodgers are an outlier, featuring a rotation consisting of five All-Stars — but they are the outlier. Most clubs are relying on bullpens to cover the bulk of the innings these days, including several of the clubs still standing in the Division Series.

The formula for getting 27 outs doesn’t all have to be the same. Some clubs have several elite starters who can carry the load, and others rely heavily on a plethora of relievers who can create difficult matchups throughout nine innings. That’s exactly what the Braves have done over the first five games.

Atlanta has a slew of high-leverage arms that are built for high-pressure situations, but what’s standing out early on is the guys behind them. Ray Kerr and Dylan Dodd aren’t household names, but they’ve both been incredible for the Braves all season and are now showing up on the biggest stage. That’s how deep this group is, and when you pair that with the likes of Chris Sale and Tyler Mahle, there are enough guys for Walt Weiss to turn to for 27 outs on any given night.

How far the Braves advance really comes down to their ability to score runs against some of the best arms in the game. Atlanta’s pitching staff has carried this club for nearly the entire season, and there’s nothing to suggest that’s changing now.

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Photo: IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire