Can Braves make playoff run? It wouldn't be unprecedented

SAN FRANCISCO -- Are the Braves crazy to think they could turn things around and still reach the playoffs? Well, they wouldn’t become the first team to reach the postseason after losing at least 37 of their first 64 games.

The 2005 Astros reached the World Series after a 26-38 start, and the 1981 Royals had the same record before gaining a playoff spot because a work stoppage led MLB to award spots to first- and second-half division winners.

And the 1914 Miracle Braves continue to keep hope alive. That team won the World Series after having the same record (27-37) as this year’s club.

"We left Spring Training expecting to be really good,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “There’s still room for us to get really good. The expectations are high here.”

Before worrying about the possibility of making a miracle run, the Braves need to first snap a losing streak that reached seven games with a 4-3 loss to the Giants on Sunday afternoon at Oracle Park. Each of the past five losses has been of the one-run variety.

“You’d think something would eventually give and you’d break through,” Braves third baseman Austin Riley said. “I’m at a little loss for explanations for what it’s going to take to get us going.”

Well, at least this latest loss didn’t have the excruciating finish that had concluded the previous four. The Braves didn’t squander a six-run, ninth-inning lead like they had on Thursday, and they didn’t endure a walk-off defeat like they had in the first two games of this series.

But after wasting Bryce Elder’s career-best start on Saturday, the Braves were unable to take advantage of Spencer Strider’s most encouraging start of the year. Strider paid for the consecutive walks he issued to begin a three-run fourth. But he surrendered just three hits over six innings and showed signs of improvement.

Still, all that matters to Strider are results. And he is certainly not happy to be 0-5 with a 5.40 ERA in the five starts he has made since returning from last year’s elbow surgery.

“I’m not out there throwing bullpens,” Strider said. “I mean, we're trying to win games. So my own personal growth and return from rehab is not the most important thing in the world. There's obviously something more important going on.”

Strider is right. Improvement doesn’t do much for a team that has lost 14 of its past 17 games. This is the first time the Braves have claimed just three wins in a 17-game span since May 10, 2016, which was a week before Snitker replaced his current third-base coach Fredi Gonzalez as the team’s manager.

Is there a chance the Braves would replace Snitker in the middle of a season? Removing him during his 49th season with the organization wouldn’t fix the fact that Atlanta didn’t address the offseason losses of key relievers A.J. Minter, who signed with the Mets, and Joe Jiménez, who will be sidelined until at least August while recovering from left knee surgery.

The rotation has been Atlanta’s strength. But Braves fans don’t like the fact that their team acquired Griffin Canning from the Angels and then non-tendered him. Canning has a 2.90 ERA through 12 starts for the first-place Mets, who are 14 games ahead of the Braves in the National League East.

“Some of these other teams aren’t going to wait around for us, that’s for sure,” Snitker said. “We’ve got to start making our own luck and forcing the issue during the game and everything.”

The Braves rank 13th among MLB teams with a 3.79 ERA. The Rangers (30-35 with a 3.12 ERA) are the only team that ranks ahead of them with fewer than 32 wins.

Pitching hasn’t been the issue. But the offense continues to be a significant concern. Average production from some of the team’s stars could have covered issues like reliever Raisel Iglesias’ decline and Strider’s post-surgery inconsistencies.

Ronald Acuña Jr.’s return from knee surgery was going to fix everything. But the team is 3-12 since the 2023 NL Most Valuable Player returned. Acuña has hit .304 with a .945 OPS, but he has constructed a .679 OPS while striking out 42.3 percent of the time during the seven-game losing streak.

Riley (.782 OPS) and Olson (.802 OPS) both doubled during a two-run third on Sunday. But neither has come close to living up to his potential. As for Michael Harris II (.608 OPS), he and Ozzie Albies (.650 OPS) have been two of the team’s biggest offensive disappointments.

“I think at this point, myself more than anyone, needs to be brutally honest and focus on as many things as we can to get better,” Strider said.