Do Braves have the best first-inning offense ever?

Do Braves have the best first-inning offense ever?

October 5th, 2023

On July 1, 20-year-old Eury Pérez was one of the top stories in baseball.

The Marlins’ right-handed wunderkind was on a magnificent run. His 1.34 ERA was the lowest through any pitcher’s first nine career starts in 50 years. He had allowed only one run over his past six starts. He had posted 21 consecutive scoreless innings.

Then he met the Braves that afternoon in Atlanta.

Here is how Pérez’s first inning transpired:

: Home run
: Home run
: Single
: Single
: Double, one run scores
: Double, two runs score
: Groundout
: Double, one run scores

With that, Pérez trudged off the mound, his ERA having nearly doubled in the span of eight batters.

You know by now that the Braves’ offense is good. Really, really, really good. Not enough ink can be spilled on this incredible group, so here we are again today. As the Braves begin a trek to what they hope is their second World Series title in three years, let's focus on just how well they have hit in the first inning this season, because what they have accomplished at the beginning of ballgames is, in multiple ways, historic.

Early offense

Let’s start simple: The Braves scored 146 first-inning runs during the regular season. Even with some relatively mundane results over the season's final two months -- five teams scored more first-inning runs than Atlanta after July -- that is the most runs by any club in any inning and the second most in the first inning in the Expansion Era (since 1961), according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Most runs scored, first inning, since 1961
1. 2000 Cardinals: 147 runs
2. 2023 Braves: 146 runs
3. 2003 Astros: 144
4. 1977 Reds: 143 runs
5. 1993 White Sox: 142 runs

The Braves scored a first-inning run 65 times this season, accounting for 40% of their games. But they often don’t stop at just one run. Instead, they tend to pile on, much like they did against Pérez.

The Braves tallied at least four runs in the first inning 14 times this season. That’s tied for second most in the Modern Era (since 1900), trailing only the 1950 Boston Red Sox, who did it 16 times.

How are they doing it?

Loudly. This likely comes as no surprise since the Braves just finished with the highest team slugging percentage in MLB history, but they don’t dink and dunk their way to first-inning success.

Their 75 first-inning barrels are the most by any team in any inning during the Statcast era (since 2015). When Olson went deep in the opening frame of the Sept. 28 games vs. the Cubs, he contributed multiple lines to the record book. That blast was Atlanta's 47th in the first inning, the most in the Expansion Era. Be it homers, extra-base hits, slugging percentage or OPS, the Braves’ first-inning offense is at or near the top.

Most home runs, first inning, since 1961
1-T. 2023 Braves: 47
1-T. 2019 Reds: 46

Most extra-base hits, first inning, since 1961
1-T. 2023 Braves: 92
1-T. 2003 Cardinals: 92
3. 2001 Rangers: 89

Highest slugging percentage, first inning, since 1961
1. 2023 Braves: .600
2. 2019 Reds: .564

Highest OPS, first inning, since 1961
1. 2000 Cardinals: .988
2. 2023 Braves: .982

That slugging percentage mark is a skosh behind the Expansion Era record for any inning, which is held by the 2019 Twins, who slugged .602 in the third inning. Similarly, the OPS list above represents the best by any team in a single inning.

Who’s doing the most damage?

You know the names: Acuña, Olson, Riley and, to a slightly lesser extent, Albies. What those first three players have done, individually and collectively, is something else.

-- Acuña scored 41 runs in the first inning this year. That’s the most since the Mets’ Jose Reyes in 2008 (42). It's also only 17 fewer than the Mets’ team total this season of 58 first-inning runs.

-- Olson’s .686 slugging percentage in the first inning is the highest by a Brave since Andres Galarraga’s .687 in 1998 (min. 100 plate appearances).

-- Although Olson ended the season as MLB’s leader in homers with 54, no Brave hit more first-inning dingers than Riley, who had 13. According to Elias, that’s tied with Eddie Mathews' 1955 total for the most in franchise history.

It’s especially worth noting that each of these three players compiled an OPS over 1.000 in the first inning. It’s somewhat common to see a team boast two players with a 1.000-plus OPS in the first; the Cardinals had such an occasion last year with Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado. But per Elias, Acuña, Olson and Riley are the first trio of teammates to record a 1.000 OPS in the Expansion Era (min. 100 plate appearances).

Olson: 1.085 OPS in 133 PA
Acuña: 1.066 OPS in 162 PA
Riley: 1.053 OPS in 158 PA

Albies falls a little short of this group -- .925 OPS in 103 PA -- and spent much of the season’s first half hitting in the middle third of Atlanta’s order. But since June 15, he has been pretty much locked into the No. 2 spot in the lineup.

So, any starting pitcher matching against the Braves in the playoffs should prepare to see Acuña, Albies and Riley followed by Olson right away. That quartet’s collective stat line in the first inning this season?

.345/.403/.639 with 38 home runs in 498 at-bats.

That’s more home runs than 28 other teams. The Orioles and Blue Jays, two playoff squads with quality lineups, combined for 36 first-inning homers this year.

The Braves led the Majors with a .642 win percentage, and that mark rose to .723 (47-18) when they plated a run in the first this season.

If there’s any takeaway from all of this, it’s that the first inning of any Braves game is must-see TV if you like action. And silencing Atlanta’s offense in the first will be both extremely difficult and vitally important for any opponent this month. You don’t want to let this offense gain the upper hand early on.

However, the Braves’ lineup has often been called “relentless” this season, and for good reason. While keeping them quiet in the first inning is crucial, you still have to deal with them in innings two through nine as well. Good luck.