Matt Olson leads all of baseball in home runs and RBIs, he has the second-best OPS, and he’s on pace to hit nearly 60 home runs. And he wasn’t the best player on his own team.
For most of this season, it looks like Ronald Acuña Jr. will run away. with the National League MVP award. But over the past two months, Olson has posed a bigger challenge to his Braves teammates than any opposing club has this season.
While making this leap took longer than he anticipated, the veteran first baseman forced himself into the MVP conversation — ironically at the same time as the franchise cornerstone he replaced. But don’t count Olson among those surprised by his superstar turn.
“I think everybody expects greatness from themselves,” Olson told FOX Sports. “If you don’t, it probably won’t happen to begin with.”
Olson, Acuña and Dodgers duo Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts represent a four-horse MVP race heading into the final six weeks of the regular season. Freeman and Betts, perennial contenders, are vying for their second of those honors. Acuña, a two-time Silver Slugger, and Olson, a two-time All-Star, are both trying to lock down the award for the first time in their respective careers. And the latter is quietly threatening to break franchise records, as well, with an emphasis on silence.
“He’s a psychotic worker,” Braves hitting coach Kevin Seitzer said of Olson.
The 29-year-old slugger enters Wednesday standing alone for the major league lead in home runs (43) and RBIs (117). Remarkably, he passed Shohei Ohtani in homers by smashing seven of them in 15 games this month, and 11 in his past 19 games. While Olson’s white-hot stretch was impressive in itself, his final output could rewrite Braves history.
With 43 games remaining, Olson is just nine homers shy of breaking Andrew Jones’ single-season franchise record of 51. the likes of Chipper Jones, Eddie Mathews and Henry Aaron for most of their Hall of Fame careers. On his current streak, Olson will become the first Brave to lead MLB in homers and RBI in the same season since Aaron in 1957, the only Aaron to do so in Milwaukee.
Olson used to be Therefore Later, he was denied co-Player of the Week honors despite Phillies pitcher Michael Lorenzen throwing a no-hitter in his first home start with his new club. Sharing the praise is perfectly fine with Olson, though.
Matt Olson blasted his league-leading 43rd home run of the season
“Being a boring pro is very healthy in this game,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said of Olson. “It allows you to play a six-month season and ride the wave all the time. You have to stay consistent in what you do and your preparation and your games. That’s what makes him so good at turning the page.”
Olson’s magical 2023 never started that way. The Braves were encouraged by the first baseman’s productive spring training, only to see him struggle at the start of the season. His swing and miss rate increased. He was striking out too much. His usually sweet left-handed swing is gone. He looks great in the cage and in batting practice, but that doesn’t translate to games. “Everything” the Braves tried to do, per Seitzer, didn’t work.
It wasn’t until mid-June that Olson’s mechanical changes began to show. He went from an .830 OPS and a 35.5% strikeout rate in his first 68 games to a 1.252 OPS and a 20.8% strikeout rate over the next 50. Seitzer can’t put his finger on a specific day or game where things started to click. Neither could Olson. The longtime hitting coach just knew that when the strikeouts were down and the home runs were up, it was time to step away and let Olson shine.
“You address things when guys need to be addressed,” Seitzer said. “And when they get to a special place, you disappear. You say, ‘Good morning, good afternoon, and high five. Waitta go. See you tomorrow.'”
While his numbers do the talking, Olson’s “boring pro” persona makes him the ideal candidate to stay in the MVP race until the end. When he speaks, his voice is soft, bordering on shy. His answers were measured and thoughtful, if a little dry. He’s a grinder, but he’s private about his work in that head-focused, just-an-other-day-at-the-office way. Unlike Acuña, there is nothing bombastic or unusual about the way Olson moves on and off the diamond.
That he is widely known as the Braves’ OTHERS The MVP candidate couldn’t be more fitting.
“He doesn’t have Ronald’s flash,” Snitker said of Olson. “But you know, I’m sure I’ll be in my seat when he gets up because he might be doing something special.”
“They’re just two phenomenal players,” third baseman Austin Riley told FOX Sports. “Ronnie got the flash, and then Olson just went about his business.”
Olson prefers to stay out of the spotlight, but that’s also what he’s used to after spending 10 years in Oakland’s system. The Athletics selected the Atlanta native in the first round of the 2012 draft out of high school. Olson debuted for the A’s in 2016 and smashed 24 home runs in 59 games as a rookie the next year. The 6-foot-5 first baseman immediately lived up to his profile of a top power-hitting prospect, albeit with fewer pom poms and attention on a last-place squad.
The environment in which Olson was accustomed to performing — little buzz, little fanfare, dimmer lights — changed overnight in March 2022, when the Braves traded him and signed him to an eight-year, $168 million contract. a day later. The reserved Olson was immediately thrown into a national media frenzy, his admission marking the end of Freeman’s legendary 12-year run with the Braves, which was just months removed from winning. in the World Series. An emotional Freeman signed with the Dodgers four days after Olson was acquired, a move Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos called “the hardest decision and transaction I’ve ever had to make. ”
“Obviously with Freddie leaving, big shoes to fill,” Riley said. “And to me, [Olson’s] did a great job there. I think this year he really found his footing and played his game. I feel that last year he put pressure on himself. And this year he’s just going out there and trusting his ability and trusting his work.
The 2022 season is a challenge for everyone involved in Atlanta. Anthopoulos’ decision to part ways with the club’s long-time leader took a mental and emotional toll on the team before it began looking to rebound. On the other hand, Acuña is working his way back from a torn ACL and has never found his form. For Olson, the comparisons to Freeman are constant. Never mind that he is still trying to adjust to life as a Brave. Things that have been familiar for years become foreign, like staying in new places on the road, finding where the batting cages are, and getting to know new teammates and new coaching staff. . Although the clubhouse welcomed Olson from day one, he admits he felt disorganized and out of place at times. It took him a while to get comfortable and come out of his shell.
This year, Olson said he feels more rooted to the team and the town he grew up calling home.
“There’s more to homecoming than people think,” Snitker said. “There’s a lot more pressure on that. He balanced a lot of balls in the air last year and I think he did an unbelievable job.”
His work in 2023 has him in line to make history for the best team in baseball, and no one seems to phase him. Try to bring up the MVP discussion, and Olson is the first to praise his more famous teammate. Acuña, for his part, is not slowing down. The electric Venezuelan outfielder just became the fifth player to hit 25 home runs and 55 stolen bases in the same season, and the first since Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson did it in 1990. He, without a doubt , one of its best players. generation.
In a more oppressive way, Olson showed the potential to join Acuña’s company. Just don’t ask Olson about it.
“I’ve never made a big deal out of it — gotten any kind of attention,” he said. “It is what it is. We’re here playing to win. I think the personal stuff falls behind that.”
If Olson keeps it up, winning in Atlanta could follow his personal accomplishments.
Deesha Thosar is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow him on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.
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