What was a position of strength with regard to talent and depth is now a position of concern heading into the offseason for the Atlanta Braves.

The six-time National League East Division champs went through their rebuild almost 10 years ago and restocked on starting pitching talent. It is a major reason the team has reeled off six straight division and one World Series championship.

Just think about who was in the mix for the rotation heading into this past season. The Braves started with Max Fried, Kyle Wright, Spencer Strider, Charlie Morton, with a potential resurgence in Ian Anderson and Mike Soroka, and a somewhat unknown commodity in Bryce Elder.

The depth was so impressive that there was talk of a six-man rotation for the 2023 season. It would have been the perfect complement to an offense that set home run records and became the greatest Braves offense ever. But my how a 162-game regular season can change an organization’s plans.

Fried sustained a forearm injury that sidelined him nearly three months of the season, and then a blister limited his availability at the end of the season and impacted his effectiveness in the National League Division Series.

Wright missed most of the season with a shoulder injury and is set to miss all of 2024. He is just a season removed from being a 20-game winner.

Strider should be one of the finalists for the Cy Young Award this season. He finished with 20 wins and an eye-popping 13.5 strikeouts per nine innings but had a large 3.86 ERA. He has ace-like stuff, but needs to develop a third pitch and not rely so much on what can be an overwhelming fastball and an OK slider. Just look to game four of the NLDS against the Phillies. The Phillies sent three breaking balls into the outfield seats which was the difference in the 3-1 series-clinching win.

Elder has promise but fatigue doomed him the second half of the season. He also succumbed to the pressure of game three of the NLDS. He remains an unknown. Morton missed the postseason with a finger sprain. Has age finally caught up to him? He will be 40 when the season starts next year.

So, what do we know heading into the 2024 season?

Fried is still the ace of this team, but health is suddenly a concern. Morton has a club option to return next year, but his age raises question marks. How much does he have left in the tank?

Fried and Strider remain a potentially dominant 1-2 punch atop the rotation with Elder somewhere between 3 and 5. But who will join them?