It’s early, but MLB-best Braves ‘better equipped’ to keep rolling to postseason

The calendar calls for caution. It’s not yet May.

“Everyone feels good about what is going on right now, but we also know the long game here,” manager Walt Weiss said after the Braves beat the Phillies 6-2 on Sunday.

Point taken. But the circumstances inspire throwing caution out the window and declaring the Braves’ great start as sustainable.

The Braves (20-9) aren’t even close to full strength and yet they still haven’t lost a series (8-0-1). That’s remarkable considering all the question marks about the team to start the season.

The Braves won two of three games against the Phillies at Truist Park this weekend. They swept them last weekend in Philadelphia. The Braves already have a six-game lead in the National League East, and roster reinforcements are on the way.

It’s all enough to get me looking at the playoff odds already. The main statistical projection at FanGraphs gives the Braves about an 80% chance of winning the East and a 90% chance of making the playoffs.

Nothing that has happened so far casts doubt on those numbers. There are plenty of reasons to think the Braves will keep rolling.

“We are playing all facets (well), really,” Weiss said. “Every once in a while, we will have a clunker. But anytime we’ve had that this year, virtually every time, we come back and play like this the next day.

“There hasn’t been any of these prolonged (bad) stretches yet. And look, they may be coming. That’s the nature of this game.

“(But) I think we are better equipped to handle those stretches where we are struggling. We are just deeper in every area.”

That’s how the Braves have thrived despite bad injury luck.

The Braves have received zero innings from superlative young right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach (elbow) and former strikeout king Spender Strider (oblique). The Braves rank third in starters’ ERA without them.

Strider had his third minor-league rehabilitation start. Schwellenbach could start throwing in May.

Martin Pérez (2.70 ERA) and Reynaldo López (3.74 ERA) have been effective when asked to start. They’ll be depth pieces if Schwellenbach and Strider return to form.

The Braves haven’t gotten any at-bats from three projected lineup regulars: shortstop Ha-Seong Kim (hand surgery), catcher Sean Murphy (hip) and left fielder Jurickson Profar (season-long PED ban). The Braves lead MLB in runs scored per game without them.

Murphy is on rehabilitation assignment with Strider at Triple-A Gwinnett. Kim is projected to return next week. Weiss will have multiple lineup options if they perform as expected.

Nearly all the offseason moves made by Braves boss Alex Anthopoulos are paying off so far. Hardly anything is going right for his front-office counterparts with the Phillies and Mets.

Those teams were getting shorter preseason odds than the Braves to win the East. They already are in danger of being left in the dust. The Phillies and Mets poured money into their rosters, and the early returns have been awful.

The Phillies (9-19) ended a 10-game losing streak by beating the Braves in extra innings on Saturday. They fell behind by six runs after two innings on Sunday.

The Mets ended a 12-game losing streak with two wins in a row against the Twins. They lost a series to the Rockies this weekend.

The Phillies have a better chance than the Mets of regrouping. But they look like an old, overpriced team so far.

Catcher J.T. Realmuto (35) is out of the lineup with a back injury. Kyle Schwarber (33), Bryce Harper (33) and Trea Turner (33) aren’t much younger.

The Phillies re-signed Schwarber for five years and $150 million. He led the NL with 56 home runs in 2025 and already has nine homers this year. The Phillies still rank near the bottom of MLB in runs scored.

Schwarber, Harper and Brandon Marsh are producing as expected. Philadelphia’s other lineup mainstays aren’t.

Right-hander Aaron Nola (33) was bad last season and hasn’t been any better this year. The Braves knocked him out of Sunday’s game with six runs scored over 4 2/3 innings.

Philadelphia’s playoff streak could be over at four years. The loss in the 2022 World Series might be the peak for the Harper era.

The Braves fell off the past two seasons, but now they are on the come. That means something even in April.

“I think it’s important, and it is a lot of fun,” Braves lefty Chris Sale said after holding the Phillies scoreless over six innings. “Coming to the ballpark expecting to win is a lot more fun than the other side of it. We are having a good time. We are meshing really well.

“Vibes are high. We’re playing really well. Keeping it loose. Even when we lose, we are coming in the next day like, ‘All right, we are going to win this one.’”

They usually do. The Braves lost three games in a row from April 4-6. They haven’t lost back-to-back games since.

Weiss noted that “there was lot of doom and gloom, and I get it” about his team to start the season.

“There was a lot going on and these guys have responded,” Weiss said. “That’s been a great sign.”