The Atlanta Braves bullpen could be the best in baseball next year.
The Atlanta Braves bullpen grades out as one of the best in baseball after a busy offseason that included re-signing closer Raisel Iglesias and adding Robert Suarez on a three-year deal worth $45 million.
With two proven arms in place, Atlanta has built stability at the back end of games and positioned itself to handle the grind of a long season. The Braves may also have another arm capable of making a major impact in 2026, and that is Daysbel Hernandez.
Hernandez showed enough promise in 2024 that many believed 2025 would be his breakout season. Instead, inconsistency defined his year. He finished with a 3.41 ERA and 33 strikeouts across 39 appearances, but his command slipped badly.
He walked 18.3% of the batters he faced, a sharp decline from the 5.9% walk rate he carried in 2024 over 16 big-league outings. Those numbers highlight the challenge of translating raw stuff into consistent results, something that has often separated reliable relievers from those who fade quickly.
Even with those frustrating results, there is still plenty of reason to believe in Hernandez. His arsenal remains electric. He has a four-seam fastball that averages 97.7 mph and a slider that comes in at 89 mph.
Few pitchers can consistently throw that hard while pairing it with a sharp secondary pitch. Those weapons give him the profile of a high-leverage arm if he can regain control, and the Braves know that kind of upside is rare.
The hope is that new Braves pitching coach Jeremy Hefner can help Hernandez refine his approach and maximize his arsenal. Hefner has a reputation for helping pitchers simplify their mechanics and better understand how to deploy their strengths.
If Hernandez learns how to better harness his fastball and slider, he has the tools to emerge as a breakout candidate and a crucial complement to Iglesias and Suarez. That would further solidify Atlanta’s bullpen as one of the deepest in the league, giving manager Walt Weiss multiple options in late-inning situations.
Hernandez is still just 29 years old and only debuted for the Braves in 2023, so his experience is limited. His age and mileage suggest there is room for growth. With Iglesias and Suarez anchoring the bullpen, Hernandez does not need to carry the load alone. Instead, he has the chance to develop into a trusted weapon who can change the dynamic of Atlanta’s relief corps in 2026.