Atlanta Braves Have Hometown Stars in Matt Olson and Michael Harris

(Other Braves stars, such as third baseman Austin Riley, from Mississippi, and pitcher Kyle Wright, from Alabama, also grew up in what is considered Braves territory. Riley, 25, also signed a contract extension last season, for 10 years and $212 million. Both are franchise records.)

Among the obvious perks of playing at home: sleeping in a familiar bed, seeing family more often and having relatives and friends attend games. While some players might shy away from the added demands of being at home, many more, including Olson, Harris and McHugh, a married father of two, welcomed it.

“It’s great to be at home,” Harris said.

Added Olson, who slugged 34 home runs last season: “It was a good change. It’s easy to get caught up in the baseball world of worrying about everything as far as being at the field. But the away-from-the-field stuff is just as important, and having friends and family and people and an area you know around is big.”

Despite playing in one of the most competitive divisions in M.L.B., Atlanta is expected to contend for the N.L. East title and a World Series trophy this season. Also lurking in the division are the Philadelphia Phillies, who lost to the Houston Astros in the 2022 World Series, and the Mets, who won 101 regular-season games but fell in the wild-card round to the San Diego Padres. To get past those rivals, Atlanta may need a lot of help from its hometown players once again.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/29/sports/baseball/atlanta-braves-matt-olson.html