Atlanta Braves Matt Olson celebrates his two-run homer in the first inning of a spring training baseball game against the Minnesota Twins in North Port, Fla., Saturday, March 4.

It is still early in spring training but early reviews on first baseman Matt Olson is that he appears to be locked and loaded for a grand second season with the Atlanta Braves.

The season could be extra special for the lefty now that Major League Baseball has banned the defensive shift. I’ll get to that controversial move in just a few paragraphs.

But Olson’s early-season March statistics are already staggering, and he’s only played in a handful of spring training games. He connected for eight hits in his first 15 at-bats, including three home runs. He’s driven in eight runs, scored six, tallied a .533 average and 1.763 OPS.

That is a sharp start to the season which needs to be a doozy for the first baseman and the Braves in their attempt to win another National League East Division championship and contend for a World Series title.

Olson was solid in his first season in Atlanta with 34 homers and 103 RBIs, but his batting average dipped to .240, his worst in a 162-game season. He also struck out 170 times and managed only 148 hits.

Considering that he replaced Freddie Freeman at first, the two will always be compared in the eyes of the average Braves fans. In Freeman’s first year with the Los Angeles Dodgers, he batted .325 with 199 hits and only 102 strikeouts. He is a career .298 hitter. I’m not saying Olson’s average needs to rise by 60 points, but it does need to improve so Olson can provide more thump in the lineup.

That improvement should come thanks to the shift ban that MLB has decided to implement for this year. Defenses have utilized the shift by bringing an extra defender to one side of the field. In the case of a left-handed batter, the third baseman would relocate to short right field, making it extremely difficult for a left-handed pull hitter to hit to right field.

Like most pull hitters, Olson faced his share of defenses utilizing the shift. David O’Brien, who writes for the Athletic, said Olson faced shifts in 81% of his plate appearances last season. Consequently, he was robbed of multiple hits that would have reached right field. His batting average should rise significantly with that defensive strategy being outlawed.

This is now a key part of the game, just like pitch clocks and oversize bases. You may not agree with the rules changes but the one concerning the defensive shift should benefit Olson and his swing. He is already off to a great start this spring. It should only continue.