The Atlanta Braves are heading to the MLB playoffs as NL East champions.
The Atlanta Braves are back on top of the National League East, and midseason bullpen pickup Brent Suter is savoring every second of it. Suter, acquired at the trade deadline in a deal with the Los Angeles Angels, described how seamless the transition to joining a new club has been during the team’s celebration on Sunday.
“The day I walked in, I feel like I’ve been here my whole career,” he said, via Braves reporter Barrett Sallee.
The Braves clinched the NL East on Sunday, finishing a three-game sweep of the Houston Astros with a 4-2 win. It marks the franchise’s seventh division title in nine years. It also caps a massive turnaround under first-year manager Walt Weiss. He took over after the team stumbled to a 76-86 record in 2025 and missed out on October baseball.
Atlanta sent infielder Nacho Alvarez Jr. to the Angels for Suter back on Aug. 3. It was one of three deadline moves that the Braves made. They also acquired outfielder Lane Thomas from the Kansas City Royals and Tyler Mahle from the San Francisco Giants.
Suter arrived with a long track record. The 37-year-old veteran left-hander debuted with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2016 and spent seven seasons there, pitching through several of the club’s postseason runs. Stops with the Colorado Rockies in 2023 and the Cincinnati Reds in 2024 and 2025 followed. This past offseason, Suter inked a one-year deal with the Angels which marked his fourth team at the time.
Suter posted a 4.12 ERA over 41 games with the Angels this year. In Atlanta, he has been much better. He has allowed a 1.90 ERA across 11 outings and 23 2/3 innings since the trade. His combined line now sits at 2-2 with a 3.52 ERA and 74 strikeouts over 87 innings.
Suter will be a real weapon for the Braves in October. As a multi-inning left-hander, Suter can bridge two or three innings and take pressure off the back end of the bullpen.
His deceptive delivery is especially tough on left-handed bats.Just as valuable is his playoff experience, which should mean he remains poised under pressure.
At 92-64, the Braves own the third-best record in the National League. They are still chasing one of the top two seeds and the first-round bye that comes with it. However, they most likely will host a wild card team at Truist Park for a three-game set.
