The 2021 Atlanta Braves were hardly a shocking World Series winner, although with an 88-73 record in the regular season, they weren't a powerhouse team in the vein of recent champions like the 2016 Cubs, 2017 Astros, 2018 Red Sox or 2020 Dodgers. After all, the Braves had reached the 2020 NLCS and made the playoffs in 2018 and 2019.
What is surprising is what happened given where the Braves stood on July 30. After losing to the Brewers that night they were 51-54 and hadn't spent a single day over .500. They were, however, only five games behind the Mets in the National League East, so Alex Anthopoulos decided to act.