Hall of Fame Pitcher High on Atlanta Braves World Series Chances

The Atlanta Braves picked up another impressive win on Tuesday when they took down the Chicago Cubs, 5-2. The latest win comes right after they took two out of three against the Los Angeles Dodgers out west.

This latest string of statement wins has caught the attention of Hall of Fame starting pitcher and analyst for TBS, Pedro Martinez. He is fully bought in on their ability to go on a run.

"The Braves are the only team in the National League that I see have a legit chance to give the Dodgers a run for their money," Martinez said via X (Twitter).

There's a strong implication here. If there is one team who could come out of the National League and win the pennant instead of the Dodgers, it's the Braves.

While it helps that they already showed they can go into Los Angeles and win a series against the defending back-to-back World Series champions, the construction of the team stood out to Martinez as well. There isn't a blind spot that he feels he can find.

“A complete team like the Braves: pitching, defense, experience, everything they need…and then you have the bottom of the order doing that kind of damage? This team is set,” he said via X (Twitter).

There are definitely some areas that could be cleaned up. The baserunning is the biggest highlight, but as strong as the pitching staff has been, they need to get healthier. A splash at the deadline to bolster the rotation would help. They have the extra money following Jurickson Profar's suspension that hasn't been used yet.

It would provide some extra stability. It would help this team get through the marathon that is the full 162-game season. They're making due now, but they're a key injury away from having a tough time.

Fortunately for them, JR Ritchie has been a solid addition to the rotation. Didier Fuentes is starting to get a handle on big league pitching in a long-relief role, and they got very lucky that they got Martín Pérez in a stealth addition. It's allowed them to remain on solid ground in a way that would have been impossible last season.

There is plenty of baseball ahead that could test this team's roster. Something that hasn't had a chance to catch up to them yet still has the time to do so.

It's why there has been a strong emphasis in the clubhouse about not getting ahead of themselves. At this time last year, they had a 21-21 record, and that was after they clawed their way out of a 0-7 start. They know they can't lose focus. They know anything can go wrong at any time.

But if the playoffs started today, Martinez is correct to say that this Braves team is a force. They have the best record in baseball. The pitching staff has gotten the job done, and it seems they rarely have an off night.

The depth on the bench is night and day compared to a season ago, and with Ha-Seong Kim returning as the starting shortstop, the options only got better.

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