The Atlanta Braves have been suggested as a landing spot for Freddy Peralta before the 2026 deadline. On July 9, Jeff Passan of ESPN said Freddy Peralta was the best starting pitching fit for the team.

“And even if certainty isn’t exactly what Freddy Peralta has provided for the Mets this season, there’s enough history there for Atlanta to treat him as the upgrade he would be. Maybe it’s Peralta, and maybe it’s Michael Wacha, and maybe it’s one of a dozen other starting pitchers available. Whatever the Braves choose, their needs happen to align with the market’s clear strength, and there are fewer sure bets at this deadline than Atlanta getting a starting pitcher”.

However, acquiring Freddy Peralta would be a horrendous idea for the Atlanta Braves for two reasons.

Red Flag #1: High Pitch Counts and Limited Depth

Freddy Peralta has a pitching game plan that prevents him from going deep into games. He tends to over-reliance on his four-seam fastball. Since 2024, he has thrown four-seamers 4,249 times, 53.4% of his total pitches. This tendency has put him number one in four seam fastball usage since 2024.

Unfortunately, he has below-average four-seam fastball velocity over the span. Freddy Peralta has thrown the pitch at an average velocity of 94.5 miles an hour, ranking 201st among all starting pitchers. 

Due to his below-average velocity, Freddy Peralta threw a significant number of his fastballs on the edge of the strike zone. Since 2024, he has thrown 1,856 fastballs on the edge of the strike zone. This puts him second among all starting pitchers.

When Freddy Peralta throws a fastball on the edge of the strike zone, many of them are called balls or fouled off. Since 2024, he has had 902 fastballs called balls or fouled off, ranking second among all starting pitchers.

As a result, Freddy Peralta throws a lot of pitches per inning, averaging 17.71 since 2024, and is also in the top three among all starting pitchers.

Together, these factors have led to his averaging 5.3 innings per outing since 2024. Consequently, if the Atlanta Braves acquired him, there would be significant reliance on the bullpen to finish the game.

Red Flag #2: A Dangerous Fly-Ball Profile for Truist Park

Freddy Peralta has been more of a fly-ball pitcher since 2024 . 61.3% of the balls in play against him have been in the air. This type of ball profile indicates he would continue to struggle at Truist Park.

The Atlanta Braves played their first game at Truist Park in 2017 . Since its debut, the ballpark has earned the label of a hitter-friendly ballpark. This is because the stadium has a home run ballpark factor of 101.1. This indicates that the ballpark’s home run rate is 1.1% above league average.

Due to the stadium elements, Freddy Peralta has struggled at Atlanta’s New Ballpark. He has given up three home runs in 17.2 innings across four starts. Those numbers have contributed to his 6.62 ERA in Atlanta.

Furthermore, he hasn’t gone deep into games at this ballpark, averaging four and one-third innings per start. 

Because of both of these factors, the Atlanta Braves’ acquiring Freddy Peralta would be a horrendous idea, and they need to focus on other starting pitching options. Two potential options for the Atlanta Braves could be Clay Holmes and Jose Soriano. 

Both of these pitchers have a ground-ball percentage over 57% since the beginning of 2024. Consequently, the ballpark factor is less likely to impact them.