Matt Olson Takes Accountability After Atlanta Braves Elimination

Matt Olson is not making excuses after the Atlanta Braves were eliminated by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday.

After a 4-1 loss in Game 4 of the National League Division Series, the 32-year-old first baseman acknowledged that he had chances to change the outcome and did not come through.

"You know, personally, I had some spots that I could have come through in and didn't. Those things are always going to stick with you," Olson said, via Chad Bishop of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Olson played all 162 games and was one of Atlanta's most important hitters this year. He finished with a .251 average, .321 on-base percentage, .823 OPS, 41 home runs and 93 RBIs. He earned his fourth career All-Star selection and likely will receive some NL MVP votes as well in the offseason.

The postseason was a different story. Olson went 4-for-27 with one home run and three RBIs across Atlanta's seven playoff games. He also went 0-for-4 with a strikeout in the season-ending loss.

The Braves had their chances in Game 4. Right-hander starter Tyler Mahle allowed just two runs, one earned, over 6 1/3 innings, keeping Atlanta in the game before the bullpen took over. Michael Harris scored the Braves' only run in the first inning after reaching on a single and coming home on a wild pitch.

The game stayed tied 1-1 until the seventh. After Mahle left with one out and a runner on, the Dodgers loaded the bases against Didier Fuentes before Robert Suarez entered to face Andy Pages. Pages delivered a two-run single to put Los Angeles ahead, and Max Muncy added a solo homer in the ninth to close it out.

Atlanta also hurt itself defensively. Mauricio Dubon could not handle a routine fly ball from Muncy in the second inning, allowing the Dodgers to tie the game. The Braves finished the NLDS 1-for-23 with runners in scoring position, which tells the story of why this series ended the way it did. Olson himself also failed to bring runners home during the postseason, which was especially detrimental to the team considering he hits in the clean-up sot.

The loss ended a 94-win season in which Atlanta won the NL East for the seventh time since 2018. They won their wild card round matchup against Philadelphia before running into a Dodgers team they could not solve offensively. Olson knows he was one of the players who needed to be better, and he is not hiding from that.