Bryce Elder Silences Doubts With Another Strong Start for Braves

ATLANTA – The Atlanta Braves entered the season with some lingering doubts in their rotation, but Monday’s strong performance from Bryce Elder provided another sigh of relief. His six scoreless innings of work marked the fourth straight day of strong work by a Braves starter, and the often-maligned Elder picked up right where he left off in 2025.

Going back to August 24th, Elder is the only pitcher in baseball who has allowed three runs or fewer over at least six innings of work. He did have one blow-up start in September, but he combined to throw 44.2 innings with a 2.82 ERA, a 41:8 K:BB ratio, and 14 total earned runs in that timeframe – a far cry from the 6.29 ERA in the 111.2 innings before that.

“He was really good over the last four or five weeks of the season, probably one of our best,” manager Walt Weiss said. “Then he was throwing the ball well in spring training, and it has carried over. That doesn’t always happen, but it’s big for us – obviously, all the starters are, but to get these types of starts first time through the rotation is a confidence-builder for everybody.”

It is a continuation of what has been a topsy-turvy five seasons in the Majors for Elder. He has seen his highs, including an All-Star Game appearance in 2023, but his fair share of lows, including several demotions to triple-A. Elder said after the game that those struggles have made him a better, more refined pitcher – even more so than the one who reached the pinnacle of his young career.

“Definitely more complete,” the pitcher said about how he has improved. “I think in 2023, I went on a run where I was just making good pitches over and over and over again. I even got away with some, and you’re going to get lucky sometimes. But from a ‘stuff’ standpoint, and just the crispness of stuff, absolutely I do [feel like a better pitcher than in 2023].”

Speaking of the “stuff,” Elder re-debuted his cutter in the win. He said after the game that it is a pitch he will continue to refine against lefties before leaning into it more down the line against righties. The option gives the typically vertical-plane pitcher a left-to-right variable to offer up to batters, changing up what they are used to seeing.

Overall, the player at the podium sounded like a more confident pitcher, and Monday’s game was a sign of that elevated mental state.

And that did not come easily for Elder over his career. The pitcher has been the subject of plenty of criticism and online hate since that All-Star Break in 2023. According to MLB’s Mark Bowman, he posted a 5.99 ERA over the 44 starts from July 18 that season to the start just before he went on his run last season in August.

The veteran, who is now out of options, is likely running out of chances with the club, but he is making the most of this opportunity. He is just one game into the 2026 season, so the sample size is still minuscule, but it was encouraging to see him start strong.

“It felt good,” Elder said. “At the end of last year, I was kind of hoping the season would keep going because I was on a roll, but to come in and for it to translate and get a good start felt good.”

The rotation remains a concern for the Braves, but the strong outings from the first four have seemed to quiet those, if only just for now.

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