Despite all the injuries and adversity the 2024 Atlanta Braves faced, they are in the playoffs. However, it doesn’t get any easier from here for the Braves, after playing in a doubleheader yesterday with the Mets to get into the postseason the Braves jumped on a plane, flew across the country, and will start their wild card series with the Padres tonight where they won’t have their best pitcher in Chris Sale available to them.
Not only are the Braves coming into the series shorthanded, but they are facing what former Braves pitcher and now Braves analyst for Bally Sports South CJ Nitkowski thinks is “the most complete team in the big leagues” in the San Diego Padres. Nitkowski joined The Morning Shift earlier today and talked about the challenges the Padres will present to the Braves in the Wild Card round.
“First of all, big picture, they're probably the most complete team in the big leagues. Everyone has their strengths, everyone has their questions, but they can also get bounced in the first round, I mean that’s just the reality of our game, which is really nice about this postseason in particular, there are no juggernauts, there’s some good teams for sure, there’s some question marks, but is there no team that you look at and you say man how are we going to beat that team, but if there was one it would be the San Diego Padres.” CJ said.
Nitkowski also talks about how the three probable starters for the Padres in this series, Michael King, Joe Musgrove, and Dylan Cease, will each give the Braves “different looks”, and will “all be a challenge” for the Braves.
CJ wrapped up his thoughts about the Padres by talking about how San Diego has a “deep bullpen” that has a lot of “big arms” in it, and is “problematic”. Nitkowski also believes that these will “close games that the Braves will have to win”.
From losing Ronald Acuña Jr. and Spencer Strider early in the season, losing Austin Riley late in the season, to now not having Chris Sale for the Wild Card series the Braves have been faced with trials and tribulations all season long, and this is just the latest challenge to overcome, the latest hurdle to jump over, so it’s just a question of whether or not the Braves will overcome it starting tonight.
