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Braves players who will be critical in the second half of 2021

By Payton Wilkerson

ATLANTA, GA - JULY 04: Austin Riley #27, Max Fried #54, Abraham Almonte #34, and William Contreras #24 of the Atlanta Braves celebrate after winning against the Miami Marlins at Truist Park on July 4, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Edward M. Pio Roda/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - JULY 04: Austin Riley #27, Max Fried #54, Abraham Almonte #34, and William Contreras #24 of the Atlanta Braves celebrate after winning against the Miami Marlins at Truist Park on July 4, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Edward M. Pio Roda/Getty Images) /
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Atlanta Braves Ronald Acuna Jr.
Ronald Acuna Jr. #13 of the Atlanta Braves. (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images) /

If the Atlanta Braves want to make some sort of postseason push, they will need these key players to perform at a high level right now.

I’ll spare you from the standard “the 2021 season has not gone the way the Atlanta Braves were hoping it would” speech. I think we’ve heard that enough on this page and from everyone else on the internet. I’ll just say that football season is right around the corner and soon we can all “forget” about the Braves and enjoy our favorite college or NFL teams (which might lead to more heartbreak, but that’s beside the point).

The 2021 All-Star break wraps up on Friday for the Braves, and they will return home to start the second half of the season by taking on the defending American League champion Tampa Bay Rays. They will have to do so now without star outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. available for the rest of the year after suffering an ACL tear against the Miami Marlins.

Replacing the production and energy of a guy like Ronnie will not be an easy task, especially when the Braves’ playoff hopes were already looking thin with him healthy. However, the Braves still have great hitters and leaders in the lineup like All-Stars Freddie Freeman and Ozzie Albies that have proven they can step up.

In short, the entire team will need to step up to have a chance at a postseason run. Not one pitcher, hitter, or coach is exempt.

These are just a few names on the roster who need to play their best baseball from now until the end of the season to give the Braves a fighting chance for Chop-tober to become a reality.

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