The Braves “Core 9” Strategy That’s Taking Over Baseball

Acuna won an MVP, led Atlanta to winning 104 games and their division, yet they only paid him $17 million, whereas his market value was a projected $38 million. How did the Braves do it? What is their tactic? The name of it is the Core 9 Strategy. The Braves have three main factors in this strategy that has resulted in a winning team every single year. Step 1 was Scout and Draft. For reference, Acuna was noticed by the Braves at only 14 years old and joined the organization when he was 16. Step 2 was to develop the player, and for 3 full seasons, Acuna was in the minor leagues and he got the call up to the majors in his 4th year. He would light up MOB with 26 homers and awesome defense, causing the Braves to initiate step 3 of the strategy, which was to extend the player. Shortly after Acuna was extended in 2019, they would extend Ozzy to a 7-year, $35 million deal. Both of these contracts are viewed as the most team-friendly in all of baseball. Ozzy has turned into a 3-time all-star and a World Series champion since signing that deal. But in 2022, this strategy was truly going to be put to use. Austin Riley cemented himself as a top 5 third baseman in baseball, which earned him 10 years, $212 million. This contract would even be labeled as a bargain later in the future, but we'll get back to that later. Two prospects were also coming up through the system by the name of Michael Harris and Spencer Strider. Harris would become a weapon for the outfield, which is why he earned 8 years, $72 million. As for Strider, he would be the best rookie pitcher in the NL by a mile, as he pitched to a .267 ERA in his very first season, which is why he got paid $75 million over the course of 6 years. The brave strategy was working on a salary standpoint, but was also working on a winning standpoint, and I mean 6 division titles in a row type winning. Featuring 23 playoff wins and even a World Series win, which has also led to a top attendance in all of baseball in Atlanta. On top of that, they've been incredible at making big trades and reshaping their roster. They traded for Matt Olsen in 2022 and extended him only one day later. The handlings of their roster from within have began to get noticed across all of baseball. One team even began to flat out copy them. That team was the Red Sox, who after winning the 2018 World Series, really just didn't have that great of a future ahead of them, so they would attempt to resuck the farm and build from within. And as good as a plan as this was, it wasn't nearly as good as Atlanta's. And for reference, the Red Sox replaced Xander Bogarts in 2023, but they watched Trevor Story. Look at the Braves, when they lost Freddie Freeman, they would replace him with Matt Olsen, who was young and great. So even if the Red Sox wanted the Core 9 strategy, they could not replicate it. And that would become abundantly clear, especially after they extended 3rd baseman Rafael Devers. Devers would get 11 years, 331 million dollars. Compare that to the Austin Riley deal. Riley is being paid 21 million a year, while Devers is being paid 31 million a year. While Devers is the better player offensively, his defense at 3rd base is a dumpster fire, and it looks like he should truly be a career DH, whereas Riley is coming off of a gold glove caliber season. Yet again, another example of the Braves front office magic. But while the Red Sox couldn't replicate them there, they would make strides in the 2024 offseason, where they would give Brian Baio a very similar extension to the one that Spencer Strider got. Also right before opening day, the Red Sox ownership would say this. It'd be great to get multiple deals across the line. There's a lot of conversations going on. The extension would end up being Sadane Rafaela on an 8 year, 50 million dollar deal. And after signing this extension, manager Alex Cuora would even admit that the Red Sox were trying to copy the Braves. The problem is that it's not working. The Red Sox have been to the playoffs one time since 2019, have placed 5th place in the AL East almost every year, and have not built a pitching pipeline in the farm system. And currently for the Red Sox, only one of their top 5 prospects is a pitching prospect. On top of that, they've also received a ton of backlash from the fans about this strategy. So much so, that Rafael Devers even had to call out the team, saying, it can't be like this every year. Clearly this strategy is not meant for everyone. However, they wouldn't be the only team to do it. A small market, the Pittsburgh Pirates, the team that has not been to the playoffs since 2015, attempted this strategy. They have not won more than 80 games in over 5 years, but as they've rebuilt, they've made an emphasis in the drafting process and in the scouting process. The previous front office regime brought in multiple future starters. Pitcher Mitch Keller was drafted in 2014, and 3rd baseman Key Brian Hayes was a first round pick in 2015. And 2 years later, they would acquire a shortstop prospect by the name of O'Neal Cruz. Clearly they had a vision of how they wanted to build this team, which was by having the best 3rd base glove that they could possibly get, and have a shortstop who's 6 foot 7 and has generational arm strength and power in his bat. But as the Pirates transition into a new front office with a new GM, they would begin to take the next step in the brave strategy. Instead of using money on any external free agent, they would use the money on extending the players that they had. In 2021, they would extend 3rd baseman Key Brian Hayes to an 8 year, 70 million dollar deal. And only 2 years later, they would extend another important piece to the team. And it was arguably the best player on the Pirates in Brian Reynolds, where he would get a whopping 8 year deal on 106 million dollars. Which is as of right now, the biggest contract in Pittsburgh Pirates history. But they weren't done yet. 1 year later, they would extend pitcher Mitch Keller to the biggest pitching contract in Pirates history. While they await their next extension, prospects are rising up the system. Clearly if this strategy is executed well, it can work. Compare it to its competition. The traditional strategy to a winning team has turned into spending money on free agents, leading to poor teamwork, bad contracts, and bad baseball. The San Diego Padres spent 888 million in the 2023 offseason, yet they still missed the playoffs. The 2022 Mets spent record money on free agents, just to miss the playoffs and yet again be underwhelming. We would see free agents sign deals with teams and they would never perform up to standard. Instead of playing for the team, they played for the money. Such as Jordan Montgomery signing with the team just a few days before opening day. Which is why the Braves strategy is a much better alternative. In 2024, the Braves are currently 11-5 winning their division. Since 2019, they've made 9 major extensions. With one of them being this offseason with pitcher Chris Sale. Because of these extensions, they now have the number 6 payroll in all of baseball. And after this season, it could be coming up even more. With long time Brave Max Fried projected to be a free agent after this season. When healthy, he's one of the best pitchers in baseball. They've shown a commitment to hanging on to homegrown talent and it could continue here. But regardless, one thing is clear. In 2024, the Braves' Core 9 strategy is taking over baseball.