5 Braves stars struggle for their fate ahead of the 2024 season

Several Braves players are hanging on for dear life at spring training in hopes of making the big leagues this season.

The vast majority of the Atlanta Braves’ players in spring training might be considered to be in the prime of their careers. The Braves’ roster is primarily young, yet it has enough experience to earn the veteran designation. It’s easy to forget that, while Atlanta has a lot of 20-somethings on the roster, many of them have helped the team win six straight NL East division titles and make many deep playoff runs.

However, the Braves’ camp this year includes a variety of players. Of course, there are prospects who are simply thrilled to be at major league camp despite having little to no chance of making the team by opening day. However, there are other players in camp who are just looking for one last shot to play in the major leagues.

We’ll be focusing on the latter group here. Given that the Braves are essentially set on the position player front, the only players in camp this year who match the bill are pitchers who could win a job. Some are wily veterans who have faced adversity. Others are inexperienced players who are running out of opportunities to secure a big league job.

With the explanations out of the way, here are a few of the Braves players at camp who are competing for their futures and careers in 2024.

Huascar Ynoa

While there has always been some debate about whether Huascar Ynoa should have been a starter or a reliever, everyone knows that he possesses a very good arm. When he is on, his fastball sits in the mid-90s and has some life, and his slider can make opponents look silly. After a bright start to his career, Ynoa is at a crossroads with the Braves.

At the end of the 2022 season, Ynoa had Tommy John surgery. That, in itself, isn’t a big deal given how many guys get TJS in their careers. The problem is that while Ynoa has been out, the Braves have created a stacked bullpen, and with Ynoa’s future as a starter in doubt, one wonders where Ynoa fits into the Braves’ future plans, if at all.

Fast forward to this spring, where Ynoa was expected to contend for a spot on a pitching staff, but he has been hindered by stiffness in his repaired elbow. Ynoa must hope that he can return to throwing soon and remind the Braves of why they have kept him this long, since otherwise, the Braves may be forced to move on from him in favor of other options who can actually stay on the mound.

Ken Giles

Ken Giles is one of the more entertaining stories from spring training. The Braves signed Giles to a minor league contract just before the start of camp, which many saw as an oddity given Giles’ previous success and everything that has happened since then. However, Giles has arrived at camp prepared to grasp the opportunity, and he just might succeed.

Giles may not have the triple-digit power that he once possessed before injuries knocked him back in recent years, but he has looked quite good in spring training thus far. After initially being considered a long shot to make the Braves’ bullpen, the recent decision to return Daysbel Hernandez to MiLB camp now gives Giles a legitimate possibility of receiving one last shot at the big leagues with the Braves. If he flames out again at 33 years old, and given his injury history, he may not receive another shot.

Jackson Stephens

Jackson Stephens has been trying for a long time to stay in the major leagues. He was forced to play in the Mexican League for several years until the Braves chose to sign him. Since then, he’s always been on the verge of landing a job in the bullpen as a multi-inning pitcher. He occasionally gets a shot and sees some action, but not for an extended period of time.

Stephens is only 29, but this season feels like he needs to wow everyone down at spring training. The Braves’ bullpen is now LOADED, and with the addition of Reynaldo Lopez, some of Atlanta’s young starter arms who may need to switch to relief positions, and the fight for innings among the players already in the bullpen, Stephens faces an uphill battle to stay with the Braves.

Dylan Lee

The stars aligned for Dylan Lee during the 2022 season. After a terrible debut in the 2021 World Series, Lee was a revelation for the Braves the next season, with a 2.13 ERA in 46 appearances. He missed bats, pounded the strike zone, and provided a crucial left-handed bridge to the later innings for Atlanta. Unfortunately, the injury bug bit him, and he is currently struggling to re-establish himself in the Braves bullpen.

Lee’s shoulder issues limited him to just 24 lackluster appearances in 2023, and he eventually underwent surgery to try to address the condition. Since then, the Braves have added another lefty relief arm in Aaron Bummer, are expecting Tyler Matzek (another lefty) to return from the injured list soon, and have numerous high-potential lefties on their roster, including the excellent AJ Minter. After a rocky start to spring training this year, Lee realizes he needs to turn things around quickly. Otherwise, he may find himself back in the minors, with a difficult path back to playing time in Atlanta.

Grant Holmes

We wanted to feature a player who has yet to be called up to the major leagues but has spent time in the minors. Grant Holmes is the name that comes up there, and while he is only a non-roster invitee with little chance of making the big league roster right out of camp, making a good impression will go a long way toward determining whether he can make his way to the majors at some point or if he will have to find another way to make a living before too long.

Holmes has been a professional since 2014, when he was selected in the first round by the Dodgers. He was a starter until 2019, when he was shifted to the bullpen, but his minor league career with the Dodgers, Athletics, and Braves was more notable for his untapped potential and lackluster outcomes than anything else. The Braves invited him back to camp for the 2024 season, but Holmes is running out of time to persuade people that he deserves a chance to be a productive major – pitcher.