How the Braves Rotation of the Future Fell Apart

[@JollyOlive]

Apologies to my Braves fans. I plan my videos out two weeks in advance. An unlucky topical coincidence. Hoping for the best for Spencer Strider

[@briansolo]

we'll know in less than 10 minutes, and I'm not prepared.

[@martinarredondo4961]

Great Video. The dream rotation takes a hit every year.

[@willpina]

​@@martinarredondo4961 Every team can say this every year. #ChopOn #ForTheA

[@martinarredondo4961]

@@willpina Kind of. But the talent is actually proven for these guys. Otherwise this video wouldn't have been made. Think of a rotation of Strider, Fried, Soroka, Anderson, & Kyle Wright. All 30 teams are not doing that.

[@willpina]

@@martinarredondo4961 I still hope Anderson can return to form

[@the51geese38]

Day 5 of asking Jolly Olive to make a video about players whose best season was their rookie season.

[@treysonmcgrady4750]

Just make the whole video about Wil Myers

[@the51geese38]

@@treysonmcgrady4750 he had some great seasons

[@YGuy1999]

Mark “The Bird” Fidrych

[@treysonmcgrady4750]

@@the51geese38 his best season by OPS+ was his rookie year at 131. Never got above 120 again. Clear case of rookie season being his best. He won rookie of the year and only made one pity all star in 2016 as San Diego’s lone representative at home.

[@jimjimhuerta]

*Kyle Lewis has entered the chat*

[@TheTEN24]

It’s unfortunate what happened to soroka. That ian anderson run was wild especially seeing what’s happened to his career afterwards.

[@wingracer1614]

It's not over for him yet. He's still a Brave and could be back on the mound later in the year.

[@wandameadows5736]

The book isn't closed on Ian yet & Soroka may end up back in Atlanta before the seasons over.

[@burgerboi1678]

His career is still salvageable

[@claydouglas2526]

Anderson was just supremely lucky early in his career. Eventually, his lack of stuff was going to bite him.

[@n.stamm_]

Always find it wild, how fast player's careers fall off a cliff in baseball. Kyle Wright going from Top-10 Cy Coung to being traded for a 9.12 Career ERA reliever in one single season is crazy!

[@easytiger35]

well he was gonna be out for the whole season i thought with surgery and they have such a good lineup, they dont want to waste these years waiting for all the pitchers to come back and maybe not even be back to normal.

[@SoupSultan]

Seriously. Manoah went from almost winning a Cy Young to getting shelled in low A

[@bjr0467]

Yep so many players have had 1 or 2 or 3 good years and fall off

[@enclave9614]

Wright didnt disclose his shoulder injury hencr why they traded him

[@easytiger35]

@@bjr0467 i think guys like Tim Lincecum have the best possible careers. Dominate and win 2 or 3 world series and then youre out. Seems like most who have long careers are mediocre for 75% of the career. But then again Chris Sale is back and looking good, Morton is still going, and Chavez pitches more than a lot of young guys do.

[@jordangenetti8336]

Are we just gonna ignore how great of a name blue moon Odom is

[@Ryguy76]

😱😱 how do u not know the legendary blue moon odem

[@wingracer1614]

Did he marry Moon Unit Zappa?

[@rustywilliamson7140]

Blue Moon is from my home town of Macon, GA and was my idol of my youth years. More than just an excellent pitcher he could hit for average, had 4 home runs in one season and was a great base runner with a number of stolen bases. Not many pitchers could say that!

[@6thwilbury2331]

@@wingracer1614 Nice 😂

[@MrGreenHat]

I was not expecting the Sinnoh soundtrack in the background of this video what an insane banger surprise

[@fakedeath13]

Nobody expects the Sinnoh Inquisition

[@Lalo3g1]

Same. Love it when nerdy stuff from childhood is referenced or used in something unrelated

[@mrmanyouare]

Then the mlb power pros music kicks in

[@bleenk494]

when i heard it i was like wtf

[@kristopherwilson506]

Wishing nothing but the best for Michael Soroka, Ian Anderson, and Kyle Wright, but what about Mike Foltynewicz, Bryse Wilson, Touki Toussaint, Kolby Allard, Huascar Ynoa, Tucker Davidson, and Kyle Muller? You could make a part 2 and 3 to this video!

[@Roysorb]

Wilson, Muller, and Ynoa still have some real gas in the tank. I'd watch that video though

[@thenightrider2121]

Folty would be a good discussion, since he did have his breakout season the year prior to Soroka, and unfortunately had two implosions in the playoffs (against the Dodgers in 2018 and the infamous 2019 Cardinals game mentioned in the video). Never really the same since and was out of the league soon after.

[@addsloth3041]

Add Brandon beachy and kris medlen

[@ABCTC13]

@@addsloth3041 I thought Brandon Beachy was going to win multiple Cy Young awards. He was one of my favorites along with Medlen

[@johngittings4673]

You could add Sean Newcomb in here too

[@smiththegreat8008]

There was also Sean Newcomb, Mike Folty, Luiz Gohara and Huascar Ynoa who also showed flashes of promise before they too all flamed out

[@Swiftkickintheass]

Ynoa got injured due to his own stupidity, but he hasn't flamed out. He recently made his first appearance since getting injured for one of our minor league teams, and he looked good so we'll see him again soon.

[@easytiger35]

Dude the saddest clip ever is watching the Sean Newcomb almost perfect game down to the last strike, then that ass hat chris taylor for dodgers had to get a useless base hit. i swear dodgers such so much balls, almost as many balls as philly.

[@JPT023]

It’s always Chris Taylor or Enrique Hernandez

[@NDTexan]

Braves fan here, I appreciate this video. Crazy how these three guys went from being the next big three to where we are currently. If soroka can get that sinker to sink again he'll be deadly. I honestly don't know if Kyle wright will ever make it back because these days I think shoulder injuries are a lot more serious than the dreaded forearm discomfort TJ pipeline. Honorable mention is Mike Foltyniewicz. Honestly was looked at as the next John smoltz and for a minute there was pitching like it. Him and Max fried got shellacked primarily in that 10 run inning against the Cardinals and he just never got his swagger back after. With the likelihood of keeping Max kind of low at this point, it is crazy to see what our rotation has become. Still incredibly fantastic with a lot of promise but basically none of the names we assumed. Book is still out on Ian Anderson. And honestly I think he was dealing with that elbow issue longer than he would let on. Sincerely hope he can get it back because that changeup is nasty but made nastier when he doesn't have to rely on it because it's the only one he feels like he has comfort throwing

[@heartman6314]

I called it before the cardinals series. I agree Soroka pitches game 3 since he was unhittable on the road, but he needed to pitch game 5. Folty got lucky early in the series, but I knew he would get lit up since all season he would see saw like that

[@lavs8696]

kyle wright was my fav pitcher. i really hope he comes back strong in KC, dudes stuff was filthy once he figured it out.

[@easytiger35]

yeah he got called up and pitched a gem in the 2021 World Series when they were out of options. Dude helped win the WS and in 2022 had the most wins in MLB. I thought he was injured and that was why he got traded for now.

[@enclave9614]

​@easytiger35 yes and he hid the fact that he was injured

[@Clank2237]

I remember going to school with Soroka and he was a specimen, great guy too

[@griffinhays2053]

I still have a lot of hope for Ian Anderson. He had always pitched from behind and that caught up with him, then the injuries came before he could make the adjustment

[@dpm2515]

Yea I'm a big fan of his...no WS without anderson

[@Evant1230]

As a Braves fan whose favorite prospects were these 3 guys, I dreamed of this rotation during those 90 loss seasons. This will be the biggest “what-if” in baseball history that will follow me until I die. Best Jolly video of all time

[@jonathanbarb5516]

I think we'll see Anderson again this season, maybe even as a playoff hero once again

[@vladimirtoss289]

I've been watching Soroka's recent start with CWS and realized that his jersey's number is forty. In most of the East Slavic languages (Mike is from Alberta so he's most porbably of Ukrainian or Ruthenian descent) 40 is "sorok" (soh-rock). Also "soroka" is a common Slavic word for a magpie.

[@williamcutolo4535]

Ok

[@kevinsavage5183]

Jolly, loving the in depth analysis!!! Thanks for all the work brother!

[@Leonardo2003]

Amazing video, you always do a great job of hitting on all of the important details. Thanks for the content dude

[@ikefromsmashbros]

I can't wait to see what Wright can do in the Royals' rotation next season!

[@ProfessorTerguson]

He'll be a free agent after 2025. That's why The Braves traded him.

[@ikefromsmashbros]

@user-ly1xt4zi4x yeah, I know. We still have him for a year and it'd be cool if he established himself in a contract year.

[@the-phanatic-99]

i still have a lot of faith in these guys. they were highly touted for a reason and all have shown great potential

[@johnraynor4412]

Anderson I think can still have a very solid big league career. The was very clearly pitching through injury that last season. Not only did he lose his command, which was never great to begin with, but he also lost some velo and life on his four seam fastball. If he can come back with that life in his fastball then that changeup/fastball combo will play if not in the rotation, certainly as a high leverage reliever, which may end up being his calling card. I also thought with his arm slot, he was born to throw a cutter. Adding that to his changeup/fastball combo would give him something in for lefties to need to respect. His curveball is more of a get ahead pitch and is very much a 12-6 offering. Doesn’t play much against lefties so he needs something else to keep them from diving out over the plate on his changeup. Additionally something other than the back foot changeup for righties to deal with would help.

[@wingracer1614]

Yeah everyone keeps saying he wasn't hurt until he was but he was not pitching the same way he had. Something was definitely wrong before he finally got hurt for sure

[@ProfessorTerguson]

The difference between Anderson and Soroka....Soroka was accumulating MLB service time while injured...while Anderson's MLB clock stopped because he had been optioned to AAA prior to his injury. Anderson isnt even eligible for salary arbitration yet. Hopefully Anderson will get his arm healthy...and give The Braves another arm for 2025...which will give The Braves 4 more seasons of MLB control of him.

[@totallydougie9386]

Good video. Not a braves fan and I thoroughly enjoyed it. You should do these kind of little deep dives for other teams.

[@peterharris6409]

Ah yes, The Surly Pepper. Love this guy

[@brandonmccollum7879]

That would be a sick rotation. Spencer Fried Soroka Anderson and Wright

[@ryandeeken1554]

always a good day when happy grape drops a new vid

[@PpP-dr1od]

Depending on how you count breakouts, you can argue that the Braves have had a breakout young pitcher each season since 2018, when they started their streak of winning the division. 2018- Mike Foltynewicz 2019- Mike Soroka 2020- Max Fried 2021- Ian Anderson 2022- Spencer Strider/Kyle Wright 2023- Bryce Elder So far, its kinda crazy that only Strider and Fried followed it up the next season. I will say I was surprised Foltynewicz wasn't included after I saw him in the intro; I really thought he was gonna be a perennial Cy Young candidate.

[@FullMetalXV]

"Kenny Lofton deserves to be in the Hall of Fame". Never subbed so fast in my life my favorite player growing up

[@LaSlattance]

Almost jinxed us but we going to the postseason, NO DOUBT

[@Aspect46]

As a braves fan i am grateful for where we are today but i feel so bad for these guys man. 😢

[@sammylyons739]

insane timing

[@jeremiah_12]

This is torture as a Bravos guy. It was supposed to be Soroka, Fried, and Anderson with Wright and another as insurance. Soroka was the ACE of the rotation over Max. Maybe we can get Mike Soroka back after this season.

[@heartman6314]

This. The fans forgot this the next year when max was dealing. Funny how the people I know who agree Soroka are Mets fans

[@jeremiah_12]

@@heartman6314 That rotation would have been obscene. Now we probably will lose Spencer for the year. We can’t have it all apparently, lol.

[@Cowslike2moo]

Here after Spencer Strider went on the IR for the year

[@tridentgum0]

6 Straight division titles Jolliver, not 5

[@WiffGiff]

Followed by 54 more consecutive titles

[@eddiesantosusso7043]

are u gonna mention how ur 6-2 against the team that finished 3rd in ur division the past 2 seasons? u still got a argument? just a reminder whatever u do in the regular season doesn’t mean anything if u can fail to win in the postseason, what’s truly hilarious about this all is u have been dominated 2 season in a row by a team u have 0 business losing to. being a braves fan must be truly miserable. all that talent, for what????? must suck buddy

[@BigAl6]

@@eddiesantosusso7043lol he just said we won 6 division titles not 5. Which is true….u ok bro?

[@toy924x4]

Last night during the Braves radio call of the game they had Darren O day on. He said the reason they held Soroka until game 3 was because he asked them to and that he hated the way the mound felt at Truist. Interesting with his home/road splits that may actually be true.

[@davidmatheny1993]

This just touches the cream of the crop of potential impact SP that did not pan out from the build. They are the three outside of Fried that showed something when given the chance. Meanwhile, guys like Patrick Weigel, Kolby Allard, Luis Gohara, Jared Shuster, etc. all rode what I call the "AAAA" bus. They were given starts to possibly earn a spot and failed, but would succeed at AAA.

[@Jbergrion]

Soroka was on track to be a generational talent. Hopefully he can stay healthy in Chicago

[@VibesAllTheWay]

Make a video on all the Massive contracts and High AVV players that came out of the nationals system and or played for them in the last 10 years. Its actually a little ridiculous

[@wujujuju]

Great video. I think the ban on sticky substance really effected Ian and Kyle

[@all-timealien4483]

As a lifelong Braves fan, I can’t begin to tell you the absolute suffering we’ve been through these past couple years watching this team have maybe the best offense in baseball ever and the pitching is what prevents us from complete dominance.

[@Struzzzmann]

I still have hope for Ian Anderson…. If he can be healthy and consistent for the next two years or so.

[@MontaEllisSupremacy]

He stinks dude

[@Struzzzmann]

@@MontaEllisSupremacyQuiet boy! He will prevail!

[@rodneypatterson8262]

I thought this was gonna be about the demise of Hanson, Minor, Medlen, and Jurrjens, but no, this is the second iteration of the Braves rotation of the future falling apart in the span of 10 years

[@jacobbass6030]

Kris Medlen’s changeup was filthy. Sad what happened to him and Tommy Hanson

[@curryboyftw]

Ill always love Ian. I still have hope for my boy 😪

[@jimmyhall4453]

Mike Soroka had a great future!!! Until all the injuries…As a Braves diehard, I wish him success with the White Sox…

[@JBeck9932]

It's insane, huge Braves fan but I feel our rotation luck has been horrific at best. Can't believe Spencer went down now 😢

[@codymeyer6145]

Great video. A sad one but great.

[@joegonzales1932]

I do think that the Braves blowing a 3-1 lead in the 2020 NLCS, and all the injuries in 2021. All led to them winning in 2021. All of that failure, built up to them being more motivated than ever to win. Being embarrassed in the postseason, can lead to a team being more motivated to win the following years.

[@bengerl2306]

The Pokémon background music was a great touch

[@jaretoswald4574]

Posting this video the day after Strider leaves a game early with right elbow discomfort with all signs pointing toward a UCL injury, geez thanks Mr Olive 😢

[@russellchung3119]

The Happy Grape curse continues 🤣

[@wingracer1614]

And now we find out the UCL is damaged, Fried is struggling mightily and yet we won again anyway.

[@christopherb.8465]

Anything less than a championship will be a disappointing season for the Braves. They are an incredible team.

[@ammudkip8941]

Im just imagining if all three continued to pitch great. Their rotation would be elite just like their offense. Strider, Fried, Soroka, Anderson, and Wright.

[@jeremiah_12]

That would be a dynasty from that LA series (the one we choked) until today.

[@maddog6767]

Braves or 6 and 2, and a couple of starts had bad outings. We might have lost strider for the year. Right now, the Braves offense is getting the job done. They have no quit in them. The bullpen is doing an amazing job as well.

[@jamessinclair5859]

It was crazy how loaded their pitching prospects were and only fried truly panned out of that group, luis gohara, Kolby Allard, touki toussaint etc. all didn’t pan out

[@bonsun4186]

I feel like max fried should get his flowers more. He's never been the main guy for the braves rotation but he's always been consistent.

[@TitanUpLandyy]

What? Braves fans have generally viewed Fried as the ace of this team since 2019. Other than strider coming on last season this comment doesn’t make any sense

[@JVJsports]

Max has been the best pitcher on the team ever since soroka got hurt in 2020

[@sergeynazaro1768]

POKÉMON MUSIC on a baseball video. My ideas are being stolen. Love you Jolly

[@Neckrollios18]

On a very specific note, it's really sad to me that a pitcher can throw 140 innings and be called a "workhorse". This is where we are now I guess.

[@bricko_mode]

MLB POWER PROS 2008 MUSIC IS ABSOLUTELY ELITE HOLY COW

[@doesanyonehavegum327]

I remember Nick Anderson being shutdown all the way through the 2020 Postseason up until the NLCS against LA. After that, just never the same.

[@mitchb6698]

Great vid! I’ll miss Mike, AJ and waldrep hurry up plz the rotation needs you

[@wingracer1614]

Elder will get the call. Going to have to wait a while more for AJSS and Waldrup. And let's not forget Darius Vines

[@mitchb6698]

@@wingracer1614 I was more referring to potential future aces, not immediate replacements. Vines has looked good so far this year in the minors!

[@wingracer1614]

@@mitchb6698 And of course they call up Winans instead. I bet though that he's just there to be a long reliever for a few days. Probably send him back down and bring in Elder to fill Strider's spot

[@mitchb6698]

@@wingracer1614 Noticed that too haha, I was thinking the same. Long season will probably see all of them make a start at some point this year

[@oscarsotelo2804]

God I hope Anderson comes back strong he had a aura in october

[@Daroach12]

Reminds me of Generation K

[@zachhulsmeyer2127]

I HEAR THAT MLB POWER PROS SONG IN THE BACKGROUND, MASSIVE W

[@bleenk494]

pokémon background music is elite man. go braves

[@Vault117]

To think how close Atlanta was to a rotation of Strider, Fried, Soroka, Wright, and Anderson, paired with that lineup. Never let any of the other NL East teams (or hell, the rest of MLB) pretend that the baseball gods don't have mercy on them. It's one thing to not have a bunch of top prospects work out. That happens to most teams. It's something else when you have five starting pitchers with high ceilings all come up within a few years of each other, yet be unable to stay on the field together, in the midst of a generational offense.

[@AvalancheSnowcones]

We have to start wondering, is the Jolly Olive curse real!?!? His last 4 videos Marlins - Rotation Demolished Royce Lewis - Immediately out 2 months on opening day Cleveland - Bieber Tommy John & Nolan Jones can’t field Braves - Spencer Strider UCL uncertainty?? RIP whoever is next weeks video 😭

[@jakefromstatefarm33]

Injuries😂 thank you! Have a nice day

[@Rymann_23]

Now do the Mariners’ 2020 outfield dream of Julio Kyle Lewis and Jarred Kelenic 💔💔💔💔

[@ASnazzyBanana]

10:59 all-time name at number 4 on that list

[@JackRussell-rz2vu]

the olive dropped

[@seethan9109]

12:05 that will be the only time someone says “lost to Jared shuster”

[@daniel_lastname]

Jolly, you're a Mets fan, you should know it was 6 straight NL East titles, not 5

[@xylynthian753]

Hurston Waldrep will save us

[@danieltorres1949]

guys guys stop what you’re doing. jolly made another banger

[@ruffs6756]

Love the Pokémon music

[@JoePickle]

This coming out as Strider goes down and Fried can’t get outs… who would think Soraka would be the best of the 3 through 2 starts 😂

[@Wo1fLarsen]

With elbow damage almost inevitable now, and scouts addicted to velocity, I believe pitchers will only get short contracts in the future. Teams will treat starters like running backs. Use them up and move on before the big payday. Makes sense really. It's all trade offs.

[@wingracer1614]

Yep.

[@broadstreetbullies849]

14:29 but how did thay trio do in October again?

[@wingracer1614]

Wright was great in October vs the Phillies. He was the only one to beat them in 2022

[@broadstreetbullies849]

@@wingracer1614 yeah but I meant the entire trio

[@ThePlanet428]

Ian Anderson is due back in July this year

[@canesrule96]

We might see Anderson after the ASG

[@brendenzielinskitpt2647]

Hey Jolly! I’d love it if you dove into the trade history of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Lots of awful trades and decent trades

[@jake_2021]

Calling it now. Jolly made this video to keep the trend going and jinx Spencer Strider

[@JRIZZLE3495]

Jolly, how about a video on each Oakland A’s tear down/rebuild (post moneyball) and got them to the playoffs -after 06 division title (trade swisher haren Blanton harden) Before 2012 team (trade gio, Cahill, Andrew Bailey) 2015 ( Donaldson, cespedes, moss, etc)

[@bergentrueckung_2557]

Pokémon soundtrack in the background? 10/10

[@drakeh8277]

Kyle Wright won me a fantasy baseball championship in 2022

[@sethboyd9877]

Almost could’ve added huscar Ynoa and touki toussaint

[@MontaEllisSupremacy]

And Sean newcomb

[@saturnine000]

I would also say that Mike Foltynewicz could be added but the less said about him the better off we all are.

[@sethboyd9877]

@@saturnine000 I’ll always remember folty for his almost no hitter vs A’s ruined by Matt Olson.

[@sethboyd9877]

@@saturnine000 Newcomb almost had one against dodgers too

[@livinglifeandstuff7980]

Hoping strider doesn’t fall into this list

[@s.henrlllpoklookout5069]

Speaking of Adam Wainwright, remember when we traded him to the Cardinals in exchange for 1 season of J.D. Drew?

[@wandameadows5736]

The year Acuna got injured the Braves won the World Series. Injuries add adversity & can create more motivation & if your gonna have injuries it's better early so the front office can find some replacements. No you can't find another Strider but with the Braves offense you don't need another Strider. Ian Anderson will get another shot & Brice Elder will be called up soon. Good thing is the Braves Bullpen is the best it's been in years.

[@bravesno1303]

who would've thought that the pitching would outshine the hitting on the 2024 ballclub

[@refusetolose05]

Beiber is having TJ... Strider is being looked at... just ouch

[@Ren_Brands]

It just seems like the Braves can find and develop great Pitchers but can't keep them healthy. I hope nothing but the best for Soroka and Wright with their new teams.

[@akeelddj]

Blue Moon Odom up there with the likes of Mariano Rivera and Sandy Koufax with at least 30 appearances and under a 1.5 ERA in the playoffs

[@JustinEdwards316]

Braves fan here, yes our pitching is mediocre at best. Can't hold a lead, every now and then the starting pitching is great.

[@Coreyy12]

As a Braves fan, I let this intrusive thought dominate my mind every day

[@SamtheBravesFan]

What happened to these guys? They all got hurt. Only Anderson is still here and Anthopolous was obviously a bit tired of injury projects.

[@theMattMan20]

I need a Josh Willingham video.

[@JohnSixteen-jj6eg]

This video was released before the Spencer Strider injury announcement. While it isn't confirmed as of the time of this posting but it is suspected that Spencer Strider will be out until the 2025 season.

[@MikeHenry3280]

As a braves fan i wish Wright and Soroka had worked out longer..... wright had a 20 win season one year, soroka could never recover fully from his injuries, i heard Wright may not even pitch this season.. tommy john ?

[@wingracer1614]

Wright will not be pitching this season.. Soroka has had two pretty good starts with the White Sox so far

[@Owenthebaseballguy]

Oh man, you know, as they say:

[@JasonGoldblatt]

its happening to max fried rn too

[@christianedwards6364]

Baseball is a cruel sport. Just seems unfair to have that many injuries when a team is doing everything right. Other teams should be coutning their blessings that the braves are just a contender every year instead of a dynasty.

[@MLB_Youngboy]

Ironic that he posted this the day that Spencer strider went on the shelf with a ucl injury