Mauricio Dubón just continues to get the job done for the Atlanta Braves so far in 2026 in any way that they’ve asked of him. Whether it’s through his versatility in the field or increasingly more at the plate, Dubón’s been all over the place in a good way. Grant McAuley recently wrote an in-depth article covering Dubón’s great start to the season so far and so far, Dubón has been performing like he wants that story to continue rather than this being the peak for him in any way.
Dubón wrote yet another
exciting page in what’s been a very fun chapter of his career that the Braves are benefiting from. His three-run homer off of Patrick Corbin in the third inning of Wednesday night’s eventual victory essentially turned the game around for the Braves at that point. While everybody has expected his defense to be what it has been so far (which is to say that there’s an expectation of quality defense no matter what position he plays in the field), the big hits have been something special to see. His numbers may not jump out as something fantastic as he’s hitting .249/.304/.380 with a .305 wOBA, 93 wRC+ and four homers but he’s getting it done in some big spots. He’s hitting .274/.354/.452 with two outs on the board, with an .806 OPS and an sOPS+ of 132 — indicating that he’s doing some of his best work when the Braves are down to their final out of any inning.
When did he crack that dinger last night? With two outs on the board. It’s impressive and a tiny bit shocking to witness Dubón coming up big in so many spots but one person who isn’t surprised by this development is Mauricio Dubón, himself. I asked him after Wednesday’s game about what’s changed at the plate for him with what he’s been doing now compared to what he had done in previous stops in his career. Dubón is a self-described “confident guy” and his answer to my question belied that confidence.
“I’m finally getting a chance to play, man,” replied Dubón. “In times past, I would get pinch-hit for and never get to finish the game. I’d go for 0-for-2…it’s funny because me and my Dad would always talk about ”You can hit righties,“ but I never got the opportunity to go out there [with the confidence of knowing] that I can hit anybody.”
Indeed, Dubón is hitting .258/.324/.411 against right-handers with a wRC+ of 107 and three of his four homers coming against right-handers so far this season. Those numbers are actually way up from his career numbers of .246/.285/.354 with a wRC of 76 against righties. Dubón has been given an opportunity with the Braves to play every day and he’s taking full advantage of showing what he can do in roles that he didn’t usually get to experience in the past.
“It’s just a matter of getting the opportunity and getting the chance to go another [day],” continued Dubón during the presser. “Nobody has given me anything. I’ve gone out there and earned every chance and opportunity that I get.”
Dubón’s glove is more-than-enough to keep him in the lineup on an every day basis at this particular point in time but he’s also shown that he can get it done with the bat whenever the Braves need him the most. It’s been a lot of fun to see him continue to prosper in the role that he’s been put into here in Atlanta and obviously everybody in Braves Country is looking forward to seeing Dubón continue to make good things happen in that role as this season progresses.
