Braves Rise in This Week's MLB Power Rankings

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The Atlanta Braves had a great week of baseball. After having two off days for the first time this season, Atlanta went 4-1, just missing a perfect week after being walked off against the New York Mets on Sunday.

On Monday, Bleacher Report released its latest power rankings, and they noticed the Braves' strong week. Atlanta moved up to number five in the website's latest rankings from being in the sixth spot the week prior. Here is what Joel Reuter had to say about the Braves:

"With a 3.50 ERA and 1.17 WHIP through 37 games, the starting rotation is doing a lot of the heavy lifting for the Braves right now while several of their high-profile sluggers are off to slow starts at the plate. One player who is swinging it well is Marcell Ozuna, and he has a .326/.404/.638 line with 12 home runs and an MLB-leading 40 RBI."

After starting the season second in the Bleacher Report rankings, the sixth spot seemed low for the Braves last week – even after getting swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers. However, five is still low for this team, which is really starting to take form.

With pitchers such as Max Fried being on top of his game, this team seems destined to be higher in power rankings. Fried and company no-hit the New York Mets for 8.2 innings on Saturday. They were one out away from the team's first no-hitter since 1994.

Pitcher Chris Sale also pitched a gem this week against his former team, the Boston Red Sox. Sale struck out 10 batters in his last outing against Boston, marking a season high in only six innings of work.

Although Reuter mentioned Marcell Ozuna in his rankings breakdown, it's safe to say his performance is being undervalued. Ozuna is off to an absolute tear at the plate and is the fastest Braves player to reach 40 RBIs since Hank Aaron. He’s in good company.

Power Rankings were also released by MLB.com Monday, and although the Braves didn’t move from the week before in these rankings, they sit at number four in the league. Here is what Will Leitch said about the Braves staying put this week:

"Remember in 2021, when the Mets took a big lead in the National League East but could never quite shake the Braves, no matter how well they were playing, eventually the Braves caught them with a sweep in the penultimate series of the season? The Phillies are smoking everyone right now, and they still can’t shake the Braves, despite Atlanta still not quite feeling like it has kicked into high gear. The major difference this year is that there is no late-season series that will determine everything; the last game the Braves and Phillies play will be on Sept. 1, alas."

Although Ronald Acuña Jr. and Matt Olson have started the season slow they both have shown signs of improvement. Something that will be dangerous for any opponent when all three players are hitting the ball consistently.

In the last seven games, Acuña may only have a .222 average at the plate, but he is showing good discipline and reaching base. He has four walks and only five strikeouts over the same period.

As for Olson, the last seven aren’t as promising for the 30-year-old first baseman. He is hitting just above the Mendoza Line with a .208 average. He did hit a homer in Friday's game against the Mets.

That September series in Philadelphia may very well decide if the Braves can win their seventh straight NL East title, but until then we are in for a great summer of baseball.