Lost in the middle of all the hoopla surrounding Ronald Acuna Jr. and his 40-60 season (the first in history), is the fact that Matt Olson is also having a historically good season for the Atlanta Braves.
If it weren’t for Acuna and Los Angeles Dodgers star Mookie Betts, we would probably be talking about Olson as the leading candidate for the NL MVP award.
Still, Olson has been nothing short of amazing, and actually took possession of an important single-season franchise record.
“Matt Olson is officially the Braves’ single season leader in RBI with 133 (and counting)!” MLB on FOX tweeted.
Matt Olson is officially the Braves' single season leader in RBI with 133 (and counting)! 🪓 pic.twitter.com/gG8ETOuh1b
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) September 24, 2023
It’s important to clarify that MLB on FOX’s report refers to the record as the Atlanta Braves’.
With his 133rd RBI of the season over the weekend, Olson surpassed Gary Sheffield’s 132 in 2003, taking sole possession of the best mark since the Braves have been in Atlanta.
When it comes to the Braves franchise as a whole, Olson’s 133 RBI are third behind Hugh Duffy’s 145, back in 1894 with the Boston Braves, and Eddie Mathews’ 135 for the Milwaukee Braves in 1953.
Olson is hitting an impressive .281/.388/.606 with 53 home runs, 124 runs scored, 102 walks, and a .994 OPS in 2023, his second campaign with the Braves after coming over from the Oakland Athletics with the difficult task of replacing franchise icon Freddie Freeman.
He has a chance to reach 55 home runs in a single campaign for just the 21st time in MLB history if he is able to connect on two more in what is left of the regular season.
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