{"id":77142,"date":"2025-08-13T09:45:20","date_gmt":"2025-08-13T09:45:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142"},"modified":"2025-08-13T09:45:20","modified_gmt":"2025-08-13T09:45:20","slug":"breaking-espn-just-exposed-an-alex-anthopoulos-reality-braves-fans-cant-ignore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING: ESPN just exposed an Alex Anthopoulos reality Braves fans can&#8217;t ignore"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"relative z-10\">\n<div class=\"article-intro mb-4 text-black font-group-large md:font-group-normal lg:font-group-large\">Alex Anthopoulos and the Atlanta Braves need to take a long look in the mirror this offseason.<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"mb-0 md:mb-9 relative md:mx-10 md:mb-9\">\n<figure>\n<div class=\"overflow-hidden bg-lightGrey\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6859,h_3858\/c_fill,w_360,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F229%2F01k2fvajc6kkmadtgbz2.jpg 1x,  \nhttps:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6859,h_3858\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F229%2F01k2fvajc6kkmadtgbz2.jpg 2x, \n    https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6859,h_3858\/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F229%2F01k2fvajc6kkmadtgbz2.jpg 3x\" media=\"(max-width: 719px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6859,h_3858\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F229%2F01k2fvajc6kkmadtgbz2.jpg 1x, \nhttps:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6859,h_3858\/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F229%2F01k2fvajc6kkmadtgbz2.jpg 2x, \n    https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6859,h_3858\/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F229%2F01k2fvajc6kkmadtgbz2.jpg 3x\" media=\"(max-width: 1079px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6859,h_3858\/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F229%2F01k2fvajc6kkmadtgbz2.jpg 1x, \nhttps:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6859,h_3858\/c_fill,w_2160,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F229%2F01k2fvajc6kkmadtgbz2.jpg 2x,\n    https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6859,h_3858\/c_fill,w_2160,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F229%2F01k2fvajc6kkmadtgbz2.jpg 3x\" media=\"(min-width: 1080px)\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full\" title=\"Atlanta Braves v Kansas City Royals\" src=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6859,h_3858\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images\/GettyImages\/mmsport\/229\/01k2fvajc6kkmadtgbz2.jpg\" alt=\"Atlanta Braves v Kansas City Royals\" width=\"6859\" height=\"3858\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex items-center gap-4 ml-1 pb-2 mt-4 md:m-3 text-darkGrey font-group-tiny\">\n<div class=\"flex items-center gap-4 ml-1 pb-2 mt-4 md:m-3 text-darkGrey font-group-tiny\"><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption>Atlanta Braves v Kansas City Royals | Ed Zurga\/GettyImages<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"article-body\" class=\"flex flex-wrap justify-center lg:justify-normal\">\n<div class=\"flex lg:mr-4 lg:w-[calc(70%-3em)] max-w-full\"><main class=\"min-w-0 flex-1\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"viewablity-block\">\n<div class=\"article-content\">\n<p id=\"inline-text-0\" class=\"mt-[18px] md:mt-0 mb-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">I&#8217;m old enough to remember when the\u00a0Atlanta Braves\u00a0were a juggernaut \u2014 the annual favorites to win the National League and maybe even the World Series. That was fun while it lasted, but the 2025 Braves are a different beast altogether. This Braves team has all the talent and name-brand players, but none of the actual production.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-1\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">Atlanta has suffered through back-to-back seasons with crippling injuries up and down the roster. It&#8217;s hard to blame anyone in particular for what feels like a black magic curse, but the Braves are trending in the wrong direction. After a season in which Atlanta barely clung to a Wild Card spot, the 2025 Braves are 16 games below .500 and 12 games out of the Wild Card race. The Braves are just&#8230; bad?<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-2\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">It&#8217;s strange for a team with Chris Sale, Spencer Strider, Ronald Acu\u00f1a, Matt Olson, Austin Riley, (*deep breath*), Raisel Iglesias, Ozzie Albies, Jurickson Profar and Marcell Ozuna \u2014 all All-Stars within the past few years \u2014 to just kind of suck. But that&#8217;s where we are at, and ESPN&#8217;s latest ranking of the best MLB players shines a harsh spotlight on the challenge facing GM Alex Anthopoulos in the years ahead.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"inline-text-4\" class=\"scroll-mt-24 my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">ESPN ranks zero Braves in MLB Top 50<\/h2>\n<p id=\"inline-text-5\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">ESPN put out its ranking of the\u00a050 best MLB players from the 2025 season. Zero Braves made the list, a sobering reminder of how challenging this season has been in Atlanta.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-6\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">Now, it&#8217;s important to note that Atlanta is basing this on valued supplied\u00a0<em>in the 2025 campaign<\/em>. So while Acu\u00f1a, Sale, Olson and others almost certainly crack this list in a broader sense, the Braves&#8217; core pieces simply have not been healthy enough this season. And many of their foundational pieces \u2014 Riley, Albies, Michael Harris, etc. \u2014 have struggled immensely relative to expectations, in addition to being constantly hurt.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-7\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">That leads Anthopoulos to a crossroads. Atlanta has not rendered top-50 value from a single player this season, and yet virtually the entire core is locked up through 2026 \u2014 at least. Meanwhile, the Braves also have zero top-50 prospects, per\u00a0MLB Pipeline, with only one (No. 81, Cam Caminiti) in the top 100. He is a 19-year-old in Single-A and won&#8217;t touch the majors for several years to come.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"inline-text-8\" class=\"scroll-mt-24 my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">Braves are stuck between a challenging present and a middling future<\/h2>\n<p id=\"inline-text-9\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">Atlanta&#8217;s future is bleak\u00a0relative to most teams\u00a0and the present is difficult to discern. The Braves\u00a0should\u00a0be competitive with this roster in 2026, but that&#8217;s assuming a level of health and consistency that has not come to fruition in two years. Sometimes you need to reckon with a clear, irrevocable trend. Acu\u00f1a has suffered two major knee injuries. Sale isn&#8217;t getting younger. Half the pitching staff feels like it is coming off of Tommy John surgery. Something has to change.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-10\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1\">The Braves did not sell at the trade deadline. Anthopoulos has made it clear that he has no intention of a teardown. And yet, unless this expensive core can rally to profound effect, he may be digging Atlanta into a deeper grave.<\/p>\n<div id=\"inarticle_d_3_7\" class=\"mm-slot-content\">\n<div id=\"inarticle_d_3_7_slot0\" data-gpid=\"23162276296\/fansided\/fansided\/fansided.com\/inarticle_d_4\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/main><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Alex Anthopoulos and the Atlanta Braves need to take a long look in the mirror this offseason. Atlanta Braves v Kansas City Royals | Ed Zurga\/GettyImages I&#8217;m&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":77150,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-77142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>BREAKING: ESPN just exposed an Alex Anthopoulos reality Braves fans can&#039;t ignore - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BREAKING: ESPN just exposed an Alex Anthopoulos reality Braves fans can&#039;t ignore - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Alex Anthopoulos and the Atlanta Braves need to take a long look in the mirror this offseason. Atlanta Braves v Kansas City Royals | Ed Zurga\/GettyImages I&#8217;m...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-08-13T09:45:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-45.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"760\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"760\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"MsThao\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"MsThao\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142\",\"name\":\"BREAKING: ESPN just exposed an Alex Anthopoulos reality Braves fans can't ignore - NEWS USA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-45.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-08-13T09:45:20+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-08-13T09:45:20+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/73dec88841ffe3be696a72d46df40731\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-45.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-45.png\",\"width\":760,\"height\":760},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"BREAKING: ESPN just exposed an Alex Anthopoulos reality Braves fans can&#8217;t ignore\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"NEWS USA\",\"description\":\"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/73dec88841ffe3be696a72d46df40731\",\"name\":\"MsThao\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/23335ad696d6700b03ba8d09f84a67eadb58cde164fc044a22845ec8be19771f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/23335ad696d6700b03ba8d09f84a67eadb58cde164fc044a22845ec8be19771f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"MsThao\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=3\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"BREAKING: ESPN just exposed an Alex Anthopoulos reality Braves fans can't ignore - NEWS USA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"BREAKING: ESPN just exposed an Alex Anthopoulos reality Braves fans can't ignore - NEWS USA","og_description":"Alex Anthopoulos and the Atlanta Braves need to take a long look in the mirror this offseason. Atlanta Braves v Kansas City Royals | Ed Zurga\/GettyImages I&#8217;m...","og_url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142","og_site_name":"NEWS USA","article_published_time":"2025-08-13T09:45:20+00:00","og_image":[{"width":760,"height":760,"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-45.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"MsThao","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"MsThao","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142","name":"BREAKING: ESPN just exposed an Alex Anthopoulos reality Braves fans can't ignore - NEWS USA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-45.png","datePublished":"2025-08-13T09:45:20+00:00","dateModified":"2025-08-13T09:45:20+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/73dec88841ffe3be696a72d46df40731"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-45.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-45.png","width":760,"height":760},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=77142#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"BREAKING: ESPN just exposed an Alex Anthopoulos reality Braves fans can&#8217;t ignore"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/","name":"NEWS USA","description":"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/73dec88841ffe3be696a72d46df40731","name":"MsThao","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/23335ad696d6700b03ba8d09f84a67eadb58cde164fc044a22845ec8be19771f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/23335ad696d6700b03ba8d09f84a67eadb58cde164fc044a22845ec8be19771f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"MsThao"},"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=3"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77142","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=77142"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77142\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77151,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77142\/revisions\/77151"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/77150"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=77142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=77142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=77142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}