ATLANTA -- It¡¯s been more than 20 years since the Braves earned a spot in the World Series. But one year after advancing all the way to Game 7 of the National League Championship Series, they are better positioned for a Fall Classic appearance?than they have been since the clubhouse included Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz.

Max Fried, Charlie Morton and Ian Anderson aren¡¯t in the same category as the Hall of Fame trio mentioned above, but they have become a formidable bunch. They form the base of a rotation that is significantly stronger than what Atlanta used to nearly reach the World Series last year, something it hasn't done since 1999.

¡°I think we're in a better position this year,¡± said Braves manager Brian Snitker, who will prepare his team for an NLCS rematch with the Dodgers. ¡°We were kind of piecing that starting thing together all last year, and now, we've got three guys that are pretty good and are battle-tested and have been through the wars.¡±

While winning three of four games against the Brewers in the NL Division Series, Fried, Morton and Anderson combined to allow four runs over 20 1/3 innings. Each of those runs was surrendered by Morton. The accomplished postseason veteran allowed Rowdy Tellez¡¯s decisive two-run homer in the seventh inning of Game 1 and he surrendered a pair of fourth-inning runs while pitching on short rest in Tuesday's series-clinching 5-4 win in Game 4.

The Braves tossed a shutout in four of the five games during the first two rounds of last year¡¯s postseason against the Reds and Marlins, respectively. Making that feat more incredible was the fact that their top three starters were Fried, Anderson and Kyle Wright -- none of whom had made a playoff start previously.

Fried had established himself as a big league starter in 2019 and he carried the load after Mike Soroka tore his right Achilles tendon last year. Anderson entered the playoffs with a grand total of six starts after debuting on Aug. 26, 2020. As for Wright, he¡¯d completed five innings in just half of his eight starts last year.

This year, the Braves feature a more-experienced Fried, who produced an MLB-best 1.74 ERA after the All-Star break. The lefty allowed three runs or fewer in three of four playoff starts last year, and he then tossed six scoreless innings in this past Saturday¡¯s Game 2 win over the Brewers.

Morton has been one of the game¡¯s top postseason pitchers over the past few years. He has a 2.53 ERA over his past 12 playoff appearances (11 starts).

As for Anderson, inexperience didn¡¯t bother him as he tossed 17 2/3 scoreless innings before finally allowing his first career postseason run in Game 7 of last year¡¯s NLCS. He worked five scoreless innings in Monday¡¯s Game 3 win over the Brewers.

¡°We feel very good heading to the NLCS this year, regardless of who we're playing,¡± Braves catcher Travis d¡¯Arnaud said. ¡°We've got a great pitching staff. Three studs on the mound. Shoot, all our guys are nasty.¡±