Braves’ NLCS roster has a familiar look, no changes from NLDS

Unlike the situation between the Reds and Marlins series, there were no obvious changes that the Braves needed to make for the upcoming series against the Dodgers. The team had already added two bullpen arms that could potentially start or throw multiple innings in Bryse Wilson and Huascar Ynoa. Neither player, in addition to a few other bullpen arms, has yet to see game action, but there have been sim games and workouts happening to keep guys fresh and switching them out for other options doesn’t solve that issue.

There was a chance that maybe a bullpen arm gets swapped in if the team liked a particular set of matchups, but that seemed to be down to whether or not Luke Jackson was to be trusted or not and it seemed pretty clear that the answer to that question was a resounding ‘no’ based on the roster decisions in previous rounds.

So as a result, the roster remains the same.

We can quibble over specific questions in the bullpen and the inclusion of guys like Charlie Culberson and/or Pablo Sandoval versus the wisdom of including William Contreras as a third catch, but this configuration always seemed like the most likely option and probably the best one.

The question become how some of these pieces will be employed by manager Brian Snitker.

Will Nick Markakis sit against lefties in favor of Cristian Pache?

Will Pablo Sandoval actually pinch-hit against a righty?

How much will we see Tyler Flowers behind the plate?

Who will start Game Four?

These are the pertinent questions now versus who will be on the roster and it may be a few games before we can begin to realistically figure out what the Braves’ plans are. For now, though, the rosters are set and we can expect to see lineups pretty soon. Lets do this thing.