Weekend Reflections: Maybe Mahle is October starter Braves needed after all

There was nothing about right-hander Tyler Mahle’s recent track record to suggest he was the top-tier playoff starter that Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos sought before the MLB trade deadline.

There was something Anthopoulos saw in Mahle that made him believe the pitcher could be more than just an innings eater.

So far, it looks like Anthopoulos was right. Mahle has been great for the Braves since they acquired him in a trade with the Giants.

The Braves completed a sweep of the Rockies on Sunday, with Mahle allowing one run over 6⅔ innings with nine strikeouts and zero walks. Mahle has compiled a 1.48 ERA with the Braves over five starts (30⅓ innings), with 32 strikeouts, five walks and three home runs allowed.

The Rockies are last in the National League West, but they have a good offense. Colorado ranks seventh in runs scored away from home, which is hitter friendly Coors Field. Mahle also was effective in starts against the Brewers (third in runs scored), Twins (ninth), Mets (24th) and Yankees (13th).

It’s true that five games is a small sample size. But success in the playoffs is all about performing well with few opportunities. Mahle has never pitched in the playoffs. He’ll get his chance to do it with the Braves as long as he’s healthy.

Mahle, 31, had a 5.13 ERA in 18 starts for the Giants.

“I know on the surface you look at the ERA and say, ‘Well … ,’” Anthopoulos said soon after the trade. “But, obviously, we’re trying to dig a little further into some of those things.”

Mahle is a so-called reverse-split pitcher. He’s had better success versus left-handers (career .698 OPS against) than right-handers (.751 OPS against). Anthopoulos said the Braves saw “room for improvement” for Mahle against right-handers and, sure enough, they are hitting .206 against him since he joined the Braves.

Anthopoulos tried and failed to trade for pitchers better than Mahle. He ended up getting Mahle in exchange for expendable reliever Anthony Molina. Meanwhile, several other NL contenders bolstered their rotations with top-tier starters.

Soon after the trade deadline, Anthopoulos appeared annoyed when a reporter asked him why he couldn’t do the same.

“We’ll see how Tyler Mahle does,” Anthopoulos said at the time. “You can have your thoughts and your opinions, and that’s great. Like I said the other day, we are going to find out in a month or two.”

So far, it looks like Anthopoulos was right about Mahle.

Falcons make desperate trade for pass rusher

The Falcons will begin the season short on proven edge rushers. Jalon Walker is out for the season after knee surgery, and James Pearce Jr. will miss the first eight games because of an NFL suspension for domestic violence allegations.

The Falcons were never going to replace them with comparable players. Good edge rushers are hard to find. So, they did the next best thing by adding a good interior pass rusher.

The Falcons acquired defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. from the Bears on Sunday. They sent Chicago cornerback Clark Phillips III and a fifth-round pick in next year’s draft.

This trade signals that Falcons general manager Ian Cunningham was desperate to bolster the defensive front.

It’s not that Phillips is a big loss, though he’d become a pretty good player before a triceps injury in Week 4 of 2025 sent him to the injured list for the rest of the season. The fact that Cunningham also sent Chicago a draft pick speaks to his level of concern about the pass rush.

Soon after he was hired by the Falcons, Cunningham lamented he inherited only five picks in the 2026 draft. Now, Cunningham sent away a fifth-round pick for a player who could end up being a one-year rental.

Dexter, 24, is in the final year of the contract he signed as a second-round pick out of Florida in 2023. He’s eligible to become a free agent after the season.

Per Pro Football Focus, Dexter generated 38 quarterback pressures last season to rank 19th among 134 qualified interior linemen. The Falcons need that kind of production.

Before the trade, PFF ranked the Falcons’ defensive line last among NFL teams, in large part because of Walker’s injury and Pearce’s suspension. Pearce led the Falcons in pressures last season (45) and Walker was the highest-graded returning lineman.

Cunningham knows Dexter well. He was working in Chicago’s front office when the team drafted Dexter. It won’t look good for Cunningham if Dexter fails to make an impact for the Falcons after the GM surrendered a draft pick for him.

Three quick thoughts

The Dream bounced back from a dud effort against Portland on Friday with an impressive 89-81 victory over first-place Minnesota on Sunday. The Lynx (31-9) scored first and never led again. The Dream (26-14) are tied for fourth in the WNBA standings as the league pauses for the FIFA Women’s Basketball World Cup in Berlin. Dream guard Rhyne Howard and forward Angel Reese will play for the U.S. team.