Atlanta Braves: Diving into the first half stats, looking for ways to improve
The Atlanta Braves finished the unofficial first half of the baseball season 54-37 with a 6 game lead in the NL East. We look back at what got them here, and how they can improve in the second half.
It was not a great start to the 2019 season for the Atlanta Braves as they hovered around .500 for the first two months of the season and entered June 30-27 and three games back of the then division-leading Philadelphia Phillies.
But 20 wins in the month of June really turned the season around.
However, we all know the real change took place on May 10 when Ronald Acuna Jr. was moved back to the leadoff spot. And sometimes a forgotten part of that move was putting Dansby Swanson in the two-hole.
Since that time, the Atlanta Braves have had one of the most explosive offenses in all of baseball.
Another part of that was when Austin Riley was called up five days later after Ender Inciarte got injured.
Through the month of May, Riley hit 7 home runs and was hitting .356 with a .397 OBP. That was in just 15 games.
He continued to hit home runs for the Atlanta Braves through June and the first week of July, but the average and OBP dropped significantly.
Another big part of their first-half success came from … it feels weird to say it … the bullpen.
After an atrocious start to the season, the Atlanta Braves ended up having one of the best bullpens in all of baseball in the first half.
A big part of that was the acquisition of Anthony Swarzak. Since coming over from Seattle he’s posted a 0.52 ERA with the Braves in 17.1 innings with 21 strikeouts and a WHIP of 0.81.
Related Story. Can Swarzak sustain current success?. light
The Atlanta Braves also got an MVP level performance from their best player in Freddie Freeman. He finished the first half hitting .309 with a .394 OBP and .978 OPS to go along with 23 home runs and 68 RBI.
If he continues on that pace in the second half it would be a career year for the Gold Glove first baseman.
Acuna, Riley, Swanson, Josh Donaldson, and Ozzie Albies all finished the first half with an OPS over 800 as well.
And while the starting pitching wasn’t great as a whole, Mike Soroka went 9-1 (was one out away from getting his 10th win) with a 2.42 ERA in 89.1 innings with a WHIP of 1.05.
And he did all of that in just 15 starts after missing the start of the season.
But let’s take a deeper look at the team stats and focus on what the Atlanta Braves need to maintain, and where they can improve in the second half.