Though his season slash line of .250/.307/.370 may not jump off the stat sheet, Dubón has been at his best with runners in scoring position. He is batting .327 with a .920 OPS and 27 RBIs in those 54 plate appearances and quickly established himself as one of the team’s best clutch hitters.

Having a versatile player to plug in anywhere is a weapon that makes Weiss’ job that much easier. In addition to playing multiple defensive positions, Dubón has also started at least one game in every spot in the batting order except for third already this season.

“He just keeps performing regardless of where he’s at,” Weiss said. “That’s not easy to do. There’s a really short list of guys that can do what he does – a guy that can play major-league caliber, really gold-glove defense at shortstop, and then go do the same in center field or left field.”

In his career, Dubón has appeared in at least 20 games at every defensive position except for catcher, the one spot he has yet to see action. He’s played outfield the most, with 365 games, followed by 214 at second base, 137 at shortstop, 53 at third base, and 26 games at first base.

Though most players typically like to have a single position to call home, Dubón has moved around to great effect in his eight-year career with the Milwaukee Brewers, San Francisco Giants, Houston Astros and now with Atlanta. He has come to realize that the ability to play anywhere makes him one of the most valuable players on any team he suits up for.

“Early in my career, people told me that it has value, then the arbitration process comes and it shows that it doesn’t,” Dubón joked about his defensive versatility. “Then little by little you start playing, winning games and meaningful baseball, (and) it does matter. It’s something that I’m proud of. It’s pretty cool being one of the unique guys in the league that is able to do that.”

Building a well-rounded roster has opened more than a few doors for the 2026 Braves, giving Weiss plenty of levers to pull throughout the game. It is one of the many reasons the club has authored 20 come-from-behind wins, the most in MLB this season.

Dubón was picked up over the winter, the first of a series of moves to create a capable group of reserves. Atlanta then signed veteran outfielder Mike Yastrzemski to a two-year deal with the aim of improving a position group which was among the least productive in baseball a year ago.

Other newcomers include infielder Jorge Mateo, who is swinging the bat well and can play multiple positions while providing elite speed off the bench, as well as spring-signing Dominic Smith, who quickly showcased his value at the plate in the designated hitter spot.

Adding all of that up, the Braves are sitting on one of the best reserve pools since the days of Martin Prado, Omar Infante, Eric Hinske and the like from about a decade and a half ago.

Though Kim is back from injury and back in the fold at shortstop, his slow start at the plate continues to create opportunities for at-bats for Mateo. Dubón, meanwhile, has played more outfield with Harris and Ronald Acuña Jr. each hobbled by leg injuries at different times – and with Jurickson Profar unavailable thanks to a 162-game suspension for performance-enhancing drugs, his second in as many years.