3 biggest questions the Atlanta Braves are facing heading into NLDS

3. Will the Atlanta Braves offense stay hot after the week off?

While there is a clear benefit to earning the first-round bye, there is also some truth in your team playing must-win games heading into a series. The Braves will be facing a team in the Phillies that is coming off of a must-win series after a tough postseason race. Philadelphia played on Wednesday night and will be rested coming into Saturday's NLDS opener.

For the Braves, it will have been over a week since the majority of their starters played a full game. Atlanta needs a fast start to wipe away the questions from last season and that could prove difficult after the team took extended time off.

It could prove to be a non-factor for a team with an offense as talented as Atlanta, but it is a fair question to ask. Can the offense lock in from game one or will it take time to find their rhythm again? This is part of why the first question is so important for Atlanta with starting pitching needing to buy time for an offense that could start slow after a long layoff.