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As part of our 2020 season preparations, we are going digging into the fantasy options for every Major League Baseball team.
Here’s everything you need to know about the 2020 Atlanta Braves from a fantasy perspective.
You can find all of our 2020 fantasy baseball MLB team previews here.
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Starting Lineup
| # | NAME | POS |
| 1 | Ronald Acuña Jr. | RF |
| 2 | Ozzie Albies | 2B |
| 3 | Freddie Freeman | 1B |
| 4 | Marcell Ozuna | LF |
| 5 | Travis d’Arnaud | C |
| 6 | Ender Inciarte | CF |
| 7 | Dansby Swanson | SS |
| 8 | Johan Camargo | 3B |
- Better in OBP formats: Marcell Ozuna
- Worse in OBP formats: Ozzie Albies
- Better than his ADP: Dansby Swanson (260)
- Worse than his ADP: Ozzie Albies (38)
- Bench bat(s) worth rostering: Austin Riley
- Player(s) most likely to lose a starting spot: Ender Inciarte, Johan Camargo
Quick Thoughts: The future is bright in Atlanta, and it starts with the batting order. Anchored by superstar Ronald Acuña Jr., the Braves have as deep a lineup as anyone. There are, of course, a few weak spots, but Atlanta’s bench is also built for success.
Pitching Rotation
| # | NAME | R/L |
| 1 | Mike Soroka | R |
| 2 | Max Fried | L |
| 3 | Mike Foltynewicz | R |
| 4 | Cole Hamels | L |
| 5 | Felix Hernandez | R |
- Better than his ADP: Mike Foltynewicz (185)
- Worse than his ADP: Mike Soroka (92)
- Starter least likely to stick in the rotation: Felix Hernandez
- Non-starter most likely to enter the rotation: Sean Newcomb
Quick Thoughts: The Atlanta Braves have no shortage of options for their rotation, but the quantity is necessary to offset the possible lack of quality. Many expect Mike Soroka and Max Fried to take the next step in their respective developments, but it’s far from a guarantee. If they do, however — and if other any of the other candidates thrive — then we’re looking at a team with incredibly high win potential.
Bullpen
- Projected closer: Mark Melancon (Job Security: LOW)
- Top backup: Will Smith
- Premier holds option: Shane Greene, Luke Jackson
- Sneaky holds option: Darren O’Day
Quick Thoughts: For fantasy purposes, the Atlanta Braves’ bullpen is a mess. If playing in a holds plus saves league, then we’d gladly buy into either Mark Melancon or Will Smith. But, if choosing between the two, we are forced to go with Melancon. For now. The trepidation is all you need to know before investing too heavily.
Prospects
- Relevant in 2020: Kyle Wright, Ian Anderson
- Worth a look for 2021 and beyond: Cristian Pache, Tucker Davidson
- Don’t believe the hype: Cristian Pache
Quick Thoughts: As a real-life baseball player, Cristian Pache is a future gem. As a fantasy player? Not so much. At least, not as much as the current level of hype. For starters, Pache is far from a finished product, and likely won’t debut with the Atlanta Braves until next year, at the earliest. Most importantly, Pache has elite speed, but the power is questionable. It went from a concern to “respectable,” but will that be enough in today’s power-heavy climate?
Other Helpful Fantasy Info
- Park Factor: Trust Park is generally neutral, with a slight edge to hitters and an additional small boost to home runs from the left side of the plate.
- Green Light Rating: HIGH — Manager Brian Snitker ranks above-average in each of the last three seasons for second base stolen base aggressiveness, and his roster has enough speed to warrant this continuing in 2020.
- Likeliest 2020 roster moves: Alex Jackson becomes the team’s everyday starting catcher and the back-end of the rotation eventually consists of either Kyle Wright, Ian Anderson, or a player acquired in a deadline trade.
- Bold Fantasy Prediction: Dansby Swanson finishes the season as a top-five fantasy shortstop, also pushing for a bid as a top-30 overall fantasy hitter.
- Bland Fantasy Prediction: Freddie Freeman has a perfectly balanced .300/.400/35/100/100 season and finishes as a top-ten overall fantasy player.
Check out all of our 2020 Fantasy Baseball MLB Team Previews.
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Mario Mergola is a featured writer at FantasyPros, as well as the creator and content-editor of Sporfolio. For more from Mario, check out his archive and follow him @MarioMergola.