Evan found himself in some hot water with Rays fans earlier this season when he wondered if there was something behind the team’s historic start, and its several typically middling performers who were suddenly thriving.
Now, as the season winds down, he is wondering about another team: The Atlanta Braves, who are sitting on 303 home runs as a team, knocking on the door of the all-time record set by the “Bomba Squad” Twins in 2019, when they hit 307 home runs during the juiced ball craze.
“I don’t like to be this guy. I really don’t,” Evan said. “I don’t like to be the guy who asks questions, because sometimes, when you ask questions, people get mad. They get really mad. I want everybody to take a deep breath, because I have more questions. Just questions.
“Call me the tin foil guy, because I have a question. Is it normal for a team to not only lead the world in home runs, but to have 60 more than the team with the second most home runs in Major League Baseball? When I see OPS numbers that are absurd, and everyone else’s is far, far below that, I ask questions. When the Atlanta Braves have hit 303 home runs, approaching the Twins all-time record, and the team in second place, the really sturdy LA Dodgers, who have some great players in Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts, have hit 60 home runs less, I say to myself, ‘Huh, that’s weird.’
“When the Twins hit their home runs in 2019…the team that finished second was the Yankees, and they only hit one less home run. I’m sorry, that’s absurd. When I see offensive numbers that are matching the 1927 New York Yankees, I don’t have an accusation, I’m just asking a question: does anybody find this strange?”
Indeed, the Dodgers currently sit second in the league with 243 home runs, which happens to be the exact total homers that Atlanta his last season. Now, thanks to a fully healthy Ronald Acuna Jr. and a career year from Matt Olson, they are on the cusp of making baseball history. Still, it has Evan asking “questions.”
“When a guy who is a pretty good slugger, hit 34 home runs last year and played every single game, comes out this year and hits 53, do you find that strange?” Evan said of Olson. “A good mid-30 to high-30 home run hitter, and all of sudden, in a year where everyone else on his team is hitting home runs, he hits 53.”
So, what is up with the Braves? To try and answer Evan's question, as mentioned above, Acuna, the team's superstar, is fully healthy this season, becoming the first 40/70 player in baseball history earlier this week. Last year, he was limited to 119 games and hit 15 home runs. Olson, always a potent power hitter, took a major leap this season, while Atlanta also benefitted from a full year from Ozzie Albies, who entered Thursday with 33 home runs in 144 games after playing in just 64 last season. The Braves also got more power out of the catcher position in 2023 thanks to the acquisition of Sean Murphy, who has 21 home runs on the year. Meanwhile, Eddie Rosario, after playing in just 80 games last year, returned to being an everyday left fielder in 2023, and has 21 home runs in 138 games, his best power season since hitting 32 with the record-breaking Twins in 2019. In short, the Braves stayed healthy, and seemingly reaped the benefits of all of their top contributors posting regularly, while equaling or exceeding their career norms.
Tiki asked Evan if he was implying that the Braves were committing any kind of wrongdoing, but Evan quickly cut him off.
“I’m not implying anything,” Evan said. “I’m not wise enough nor arrogant enough to claim I know the answer. I just have to do what a lot of people don’t want to do: ask questions. That’s all I’m doing, asking a question.”