The 2026 season was a pretty good one for the Atlanta Braves, but it did not result in the team achieving its ultimate goal. They were able to win the NL East and even won their first postseason series since winning it all in 2021, only to be eliminated in the NLDS by the Los Angeles Dodgers. This season went to show that while the core the Braves have in place is solid, the surrounding pieces need some work.

With that in mind, GM Alex Anthopoulos should be eager to replace these four players in free agency, better equipping Atlanta to compete in 2027.

SS Ha-Seong Kim

Let's start off easy. The Braves re-signed Ha-Seong Kim last offseason, hoping he'd give the team stability at shortstop — at least for the 2026 season. That didn't end up happening at all: Kim spent much of the year injured, and in the 51 regular-season games he did appear in, he hit .116 with a .359 OPS and declining defensive metrics.

Replacing that guy should be a no-brainer, and with Jim Jarvis as their best internal option under contract, that replacement should come externally, whether that's in free agency or via trade.

OF Mike Yastrzemski

The Braves gave Mike Yastrzemski a two-year deal to bolster their outfield depth and they wound up relying on him as an everyday player, at least against right-handed pitching, for much of the year due to Jurickson Profar's suspension. The numbers he put up, though, were not good; he slashed .224/.309/.380 with 12 home runs and 41 RBI in 139 games.

Yastrzemski had the worst year of his career, and is now slated to make $10 million in 2027. Moving on from that contract would be easier said than done when he's a 36-year-old in decline, but at the very least, the Braves cannot rely on him as a starter to begin next season. Michael Harris II and Ronald Acuña Jr. have two of the three outfield spots locked up, but left field must be addressed.

LHP Martin Perez

The Braves got more than they could've expected from Martin Perez, a 35-year-old they signed to a Minor League deal in the offseason and even DFA'd early in the 2026 campaign. He posted a 3.04 ERA in 30 appearances (26 starts), ranking fourth on the team in innings pitched. Given those numbers, Perez has probably earned a rotation spot somewhere. That place shouldn't be Atlanta, though, for a couple of reasons.

First, should we really expect a repeat of the successful year he just had? I mean, Perez had to settle for that initial MInor League deal for a reason, and while his ERA was solid, he had a 4.32 FIP, didn't generate many whiffs and even had the second-highest walk rate of his 15-year big-league career.

Second, the Braves need more upside than what Perez can provide at this point. The lefty is probably a fine back-end starter, but is that the kind of pitcher you want starting a playoff game? Who, other than Chris Sale, do the Braves want to start a playoff game, knowing that both Spencer Strider and Spencer Schwellenbach are both recovering from major injuries? They ought to find that answer this offseason, rather than running it back with Perez.

OF Jurickson Profar

When the Braves signed Jurickson Profar to a three-year, $42 million deal ahead of the 2025 season, they thought they were getting the outfielder who made the All-Star team in 2024. Instead, the Braves got an outfielder who was suspended for PED use just four games into his tenure with the club, didn't light the world on fire upon his return in a lost season for the team and then was suspended again ahead of the 2026 season, resulting in a 162-game ban.

In other words, the Braves have gotten two completely useless years out of Profar, and given the fact that he's already been suspended twice, they shouldn't even risk it happening a third time. At this point, it's impossible to trust that he can provide any sort of positive value for the club, and even though he's under contract through 2027, they'd be better off releasing him and bringing in someone else to play left field.