A Deep Dive into Braves Second Half Surges, Why Then for Ballplayers?

The MLB All-Star break provides a convenient point in the season to compare and contrast where a player’s performance stands. It’s enough of a pause that it provides a pseudo splits the season into two halves.

Now, unlike in the minor leagues, there aren’t official halves that reset the entire schedule. Nonetheless, it provides a benchmark to observe.

Specifically, observing that second half has become routine for Atlanta Braves ballplayers.

Last year, the big story was Michael Harris II going from statistically the worst qualified hitter in baseball to looking as good as anybody out there. Meanwhile, Ozzie Albies had a more unsung but still notable second-half surge.

Both these surges carried over into the current season. Harris was arguably a snub for the All-Star Game, and while Albies is in the middle of a significant slump, he was an All-Star. He was voted into the starting lineup, as a matter of fact.

Typically - I know Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was a notable exception - you have to be having a high-caliber season to get the nod.

As those two got back to their usual selves, one was still working to join them: Austin Riley.

The verdict is still out on him, with more than a month of the season remaining. That being said, he’s been building his case.

Since the All-Star break, most fueled by a strong August performance, Riley is batting .271 with an .808 OPS, six home runs and 16 RBIs. It hasn’t been total smooth sailing, but the numbers show progress.

When multiple players are having a similar experience, the question starts to build in the mind. What is it about this time of year that the switch flips?

No one answer exists, and that can be the case when looking at one player, let alone three.

For sure, we know key adjustments can make a difference. Harris notably changed his stance to help with bringing his hands to the ball. Riley has been working on multiple adjustments all season, and it took time for it to translate.

“He’s cut down on the strikeouts,” Braves hitting coach Tim Hyers said of Riley’s progress. “I think his move is a little more compact, and just a less, you know, just kind of cut that stride down, and it’s been a little taller, stronger with the back side.”

Riley, too, and the same can be said about Albies, has battled some major injuries. Getting sharp again after being on and off so much requires time.

It’s why there was concern about Albies again when he suffered another wrist injury at the end of last season. It appeared he was going to have to start all over, and the question marks were there all of spring training. Ultimately, he didn’t have much of an issue. Perhaps it helped that he had been there before.

When asked about it being about the start of the second half that sees players turn it on, Hyers didn’t speak to that point in the season in particular, but he spoke to the roller coaster that a ballplayer can experience over a season.

Part of this alluded to experience that can help a player correct course.

“You can’t just be in that zone all the time in this league,” he said. “Because it’s - you’re going to have your ups and downs, and I think that’s the part where they have the experience now to redirect, and they’ll change when things go south. And I think, yeah, there’s times when it’s not going to be well. They’re going to hit some bumps in the road, but I think they’re pros to be able to turn it around, and now, toward the end, right here, start putting it together and help us finish this out.”

Timing is everything, too, to piggyback on the last part of his comment. When Harris and Albies were playing well in the second half of last season, the Braves saw two months with a winning record to finish things off.

Of course, there were other factors, including the starting rotation finally stabilizing after months of long-term injuries. However, part of the reason the team struggled early in 2025, part of the blame was that key bats underperformed. They played better, and sure enough, the Braves found themselves in the win column more.

Fast-forward to the start of this season, and when guys such as Harris and Albies had stronger starts, suddenly the team had one of the best records in the major leagues. They put it together, and things fell into place.

For all three of the observed ballplayers, they put in the work, and in time, it clicked.

However, there’s more to it, and Austin Riley is a notable example. During the All-Star break, he said he took his mind off the game. He spent time with his kids. It was a break, so he took one.

That mental break is what stood out to manager Walt Weiss for what can help. He spoke more in general terms, not just about Riley, but while it’s not the be-all, end-all, the chance to mentally start over helps.

“It’s hard to put your finger on it specifically, but I do think it’s kind of a natural reboot for players,” Weiss said. “It doesn’t totally wipe the slate clean, obviously, but it might feel like that a little bit.”

Having a few days off from games is a break from the mental grind of a long 162-game season. There isn’t anything like it in any other sport. Every other sport typically has one day between games. In baseball, you can go two weeks without a day off.

That can make it that much more difficult for a player to make changes, and that can mean it takes longer.

“At the end of the day, it’s just, it’s continuing to work and trying to figure things out - make adjustments - but I do think that little break, you know, mentally, psychologically, helps a little bit.

Seeing the different perspectives on these turnarounds shows how nuanced it is. It’s a process that goes deep. If you leave somewhat unsatisfied with the answers, it's understandable. But the fact that this created different perspectives and potentially more questions makes this so interesting.

But what we do know is that this isn’t the end of the story. Somebody is going to go through this again. It could be the same player or another star who has had it rough lately.

At the very least, you’ll be better able to observe when players turn the corner and be able to better pinpoint what could be the cause and, in turn, the potential solutions.

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