Duvall – Page 3 – Braves Chop Chat

Braves vs. Marlins Series Wrap

For the past few years, almost every time the Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins face off, there is bound to be some sparks between the two teams. That did not fail in this series, and we’ll get to that in further detail later. Atlanta did, however, take two out of three games in this series.

Game One: Drew Smyly vs. Pablo López, Braves won 1-0

Woah. This game started with some MAJOR sparks. To start off the bottom of the first inning, Pablo López hit Ronald Acuña Jr. with the FIRST pitch he threw. Acuña was not happy, and Braves manager, Brian Snitker wasn’t happy at all. Immediately after Acuña was plunked with the pitch, the home plate umpire issued warnings. But Snitker wasn’t satisfied with that. He came out on the field saying he’d had enough of the Marlins “shenanigans” with his young stud, Ronald Acuña Jr. The umpires got together and after discussion, threw López out of the game. He only threw one pitch. Miami’s manager, Don Mattingly AND their pitching coach (Mel Stottlemyre Jr.) were thrown out of the game defending their pitcher, Pablo López. In my opinion, and I think a lot of other people’s, Pablo López DID NOT mean to hit Acuña. You could tell by his reaction after his pitch hit Acuña…he grimaced. If a pitcher means to his a player, they don’t have an apologetic reaction. Instead, they stare at the player they hit without feeling any type of regret.

After all that drama, the game went on. Miami had to go to their bullpen, and the Braves had to focus on scoring, and they did just that. Because he was hit with a pitch, Acuña was on first base. Freeman followed Acuña with a single that advanced Ronald to third. That made it to where there were runners on the corners and no one out. My man, Ozzie Albies was up to bat. He hit a sac fly to right field, that allowed Acuña to score and it gave the Braves a 1-0 lead. That was the ONLY run scored in the entire game…wow!

Drew Smyly pitched fantastic for the Braves. He went 5.2 innings, allowed three hits, ZERO runs, two walks and he had seven strikeouts. His impressive outing on the mound was very key in this Braves win. Atlanta’s bullpen followed Smyly’s start, with good relief pitching.

Braves closer, Will Smith tried to blow the game for us in the top of the ninth inning when he had the bases loaded with one out. But somehow he got out of the mess he made, and preserved a Braves win with a final score of 1-0.

Game Two: Kyle Muller vs. Sandy Alcantara, Braves lost 3-2

Kyle Muller did not have a bad outing. He went 5.2 innings, allowed four hits, three runs, four walks, and he had seven strikeouts. Ultimately, with a lack of Braves offense, Marlins pitcher, Sandy Alcantara out-dueled Muller and got the win.

Miami got the lead at 2-0 in the top of the third inning. Coming into the fifth inning, that was still the score of the game. Kyle Muller started the bottom of the fifth inning with a strikeout for Atlanta. Acuña reached base on a fielding error by Miami’s third baseman, John Berti. Freeman followed him with a first pitch single, which advanced Acuña to third. Then my man Ozzie, had a first pitch RBI single that scored Acuña and got the Braves on the board making it a 2-1 game. Ozzie knows how to do his job!

The Marlins came right back to score one more in the top of the sixth inning, extending their lead to 3-1. In the bottom of the seventh inning, Atlanta got one run closer when Freddie Freeman had an RBI single that scored Ehire Adrianza, who reached base on a fielding error. That made the score 3-2. Which was the final score of the game. Overall pitching wasn’t bad for the Braves – it was just a lack of offense that made the biggest difference.

Game Three: Charlie Morton vs. Zach Thompson, Braves won 8-7

What a game! It seemed like the Braves were behind the Marlins almost the entire game. But somehow – someway – they came back and WON!

Charlie Morton had a rougher outing than we are accustomed to seeing from him. He went 5.1 innings, allowed five hits, four runs, two walks, and he had five strikeouts. So overall it wasn’t a horrible start, it just wasn’t what the type of start that Morton has had for the Braves.

Atlanta had the lead in the beginning of the game. In the bottom of the second inning, Ronald Acuña Jr.u hit a two-run bomb to give them the lead at 2-0. After his home run, Miami came back to score four runs; one in the top of the third, and the other three in the top of the sixth. That gave them the lead at 4-2. Atlanta made it a 4-3 game in the bottom of the sixth when Dansby Swanson had an RBI double that scored Freeman.

In the top of the ninth inning, Miami added on to their lead big time. Shane Greene came on to pitch for Atlanta. He gave up a solo home run to Sandy Leon, their catcher, and a two-run homer to Jesus Aguilar, their first baseman. That made it a 7-3 Marlins lead.

Going into the bottom of the ninth inning, things did not look good at all for the Atlanta Braves. However, they changed that! To lead off the bottom of the ninth inning, Austin Riley had a single. Dansby Swanson followed him with a forecourt which got Riley out at second but allowed Swanson to be safe at first. Heredia reached base on a single. So there were two Braves on the bases and one man out. Orlando Arcia had an RBI single that scored Swanson making it a 7-4 game. Pinch-hitter, Pablo Sandoval reached base on a walk, and then he was replaced with a pinch-runner, Ender Inciarte. Abraham Almonte had a two-RBI double that made it a 7-6 game. And then, to tie the game, Ronald Acuña Jr. had a sac fly that scored Inciarte from third base. It was a 7-7 game!

Going into the tenth inning, both teams were looking to end the game right then and there. The Miami Marlins were sent down in order by Braves closer, Will Smith. It was now up to the Braves offense.

Because of the extra inning rule, a runner is automatically placed on second base. Austin Riley was that guy for Atlanta. To start off the bottom of the tenth, Dansby Swanson was intentionally walked. Guillermo Heredia had a fly out to make the first out of the inning. Miami also intentionally walked Orlando Arcia to load the bases with Braves. Marlins pitcher, Anthony Bass, threw a wild pitch. Austin Riley streaked for home plate and he…scored??? The home-plate umpire called Austin Riley safe, but the Miami Marlins challenged the play at the plate, and the call was overturned. Riley was out. On the wild pitch Dansby Swanson advanced to third base.

Miami intentionally walked another Braves batter, their catcher, Kevan Smith to reload the bases. Because Atlanta has a short bench to begin with, they brought Max Fried, who is one of their starting pitchers, to come in and hit. Guess what he did?! After working a 3-1 count, Fried sent a line drive single into center field that scored Swanson and walked the game off for the Atlanta Braves with a final score of 8-7. Yes, that was his first walk-off!

What a great way for the Braves to end off the series with Miami, a walk-off win. After EVERYTHING that these two teams have gone through, at the end of the day, it’s still baseball.

Braves vs. Marlins Series Wrap

For whatever reason the Braves always have a tendency to have a hard time when facing the Miami Marlins. The Marlins won the series, and the Braves barely avoided being swept.

Game One: Charlie Morton vs. Sandy Alcantara, Braves lost 4-3

The Braves started this game aggressively. In the top of the first inning, Ronald Acuña Jr. led off with a walk and then, following a review, he stole second base which got him into scoring position. Freeman advanced Acuña to third base on a ground out, and then my man Ozzie Albies had an RBI single to give the Braves a 1-0 lead.

Miami came right back in the bottom of the first and tied the game at one apiece on a sac fly by former Brave, Adam Duvall, which scored Starling Marte.

Ozzie and Acuña got it done for the Braves again in the top of the third. Acuña got on base with a double and then after Freeman flew out, Ozzie doubled Ronald home making it 2-1 Braves on top.

The fourth inning is where Charlie Morton got into some trouble. He started the inning with a one-pitch groundout of Duvall. After Morton got the first out, he walked Isan Diaz on four straight pitches and then hit the next batter. Free baserunners will more than likely always come back to haunt a pitcher, and sure enough, John Berti had an RBI single which tied the game at 2. After Morton got a strikeout of Alcantara for the second out, Marlins young stud, Jazz Chisholm Jr. had a two-RBI single that gave Miami the lead at 4-2.

The Braves came one run closer in the top of the seventh on an RBI double by Acuña Jr. that scored Ehire Adrianza to make it a 4-3 game, but the Braves couldn’t get anymore offense throughout the remainder of the game to tie or win.

Game Two: Max Fried vs. Zach Thompson, Braves lost 4-2

Out of all Max Fried’s stats, the one that surprises me the most is this: he has never won a game against the Miami Marlins. This season alone he has a 0-2 record against the Fish. In this game he went six innings, allowed five hits, three runs, two walks and he had four strikeouts. Overall Fried didn’t pitch terrible, he just didn’t have good execution of his pitches and left some over the plate which the Marlins took advantage of.

The Braves were scoreless until the top of the eighth inning. Adrianza struck out swinging to start the inning, Acuña followed him with a single, and then Freddie Freeman hit a two-run home run getting the Braves on the board and making it a 3-2 game.

However, the Marlins came right back and scored another run in the bottom of the eighth inning on an RBI single by Jesus Aguilar which scored Marte, extending Miami’s lead to 4-2, the final score of the game.

Game Three: Drew Smyly vs. Pablo López, Braves won 6-4

The Braves needed this win… and they got it!

Drew Smyly got the win for Atlanta. He went five innings, allowed six hits, two runs, one walk and he had six strikeouts. He got into a little but of trouble in the bottom of the fifth inning which accounts for the two runs he allowed, but other than that he pitched well.

The Braves started their scoring early. In the top of the first, Ronald Acuña Jr. started a game with a single, which was followed by a Freddie Freeman double. The Braves had runners on second and third with nobody out. Ozzie popped out, and then Abraham Almonte walked to load the bases with Braves. Austin Riley got the job done for Atlanta with a two-RBI double that gave the Braves an early lead of 2-0. The Braves scored another run in the first inning when Guillermo Heredia got hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. After he got hit, Almonte scored extending Atlanta’s lead to 3-0 after one.

Austin Riley scored another run for the Braves when he hit a solo home run in the top of the third inning to extend Atlanta’s lead to 4-0. In the top of the fifth inning, Kevan Smith had an RBI single that scored Riley and once again extended the Braves lead to 5-0.

The Marlins scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to make it a 5-2 game. However, the Braves came back and scored one more run in the top of the sixth inning on a solo home run by Ender Inciarte to right field. Making it a 6-2 game with Atlanta in the lead.

Miami scored two more runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to make it 6-4, but it ultimately wasn’t enough. That led to a Braves win!

Braves vs Marlins Series Wrap

Braves country, put it this way, we may not have won the series versus Miami, but at least we didn’t get swept. And we can thank Dansby Swanson for that! The main thing that led the Braves to lose three out of four of this series was the bullpen. The bullpen gave up multiple late inning runs in every game versus Miami, and that cost the Braves big time.

Game One: Huascar Ynoa vs. Sandy Alcantara, Braves lost 5-3

Ynoa pitched very well. He went six innings, only giving up one run on three hits. He had one walk and struck out ten. The Braves actually scored before Miami on a RBI single in the top of the first that scored Ronald Acuña Jr. The Braves scored two more runs after that on sac-flies by Ozzie Albies. The bullpen was not at its best in this game. A.J. Minter and Nate Jones gave up two runs in the top of the eighth inning, and then Jacob Webb blew the game and the save in the top of the tenth inning, giving up a single and a double. Those two runs led the Marlins to win.

Game Two: Max Fried vs. Pablo López, Braves lost 14-8

The Braves started this game off with some excitement. Freddie Freeman doubled, and then Marcell Ozuna hit a two run blast. Note that Brian Snitker changed the lineup to where Freeman was hitting second, Ozuna batting third, and Ozzie Albies batting fifth. Speaking of Albies, he got in the home run fun too, hitting a solo shot in the first to give the Braves a grand total of three runs scored in the first inning. However, that lead did not last long. Brain Anderson led off the top of the second inning with a solo home run for the Marlins, and they scored two more after that. Fried is really having a hard time controlling the strike zone and commanding his pitches. He pitched a total of four innings. He gave up nine hits, eight runs, and two walks. He only had three strikeouts. The Braves had to go to their shaky bullpen for the rest of the game, and they had a rough outing once again. The Marlins ended up scoring a grand total of fourteen runs. Fourteen. And do you know who scored/drove in most of those runs? That would be former Brave, Adam Duvall. He had four hits, scored four times, and had seven RBI’s. Oh, and he hit two home runs. The Braves did score two more on an error by Duvall in the bottom of the ninth, bringing their run total to eight. Overall, this game was a stinging blow to the Braves and their fans. It was almost too hard to watch.

Game Three: Charlie Morton vs. Nick Neidert, Braves lost 6-5

Another extra innings game, another Braves loss. Morton wasn’t at his best today. He went six innings, with seven hits and allowed five runs. Ronald Acuña Jr. hit two more home runs today. One in the third inning and the other in the seventh. Both were two run shots. With his two run homer in the seventh, the Braves tied the game. The game remained tied and went into extras. In the top of the tenth inning, the Marlins scored on a double by Jesus Aguilar. They held onto their late inning lead and won. Acuña gave the Braves multiple chances to score, but the bullpen could not keep the Marlins bats inactive, so it didn’t matter.

Game Four: Ian Anderson vs. Trevor Rodgers, Braves win 7-6

If you were looking for a close nail-biter for game four of this series, you got it. This was a good game, with an even better end result. The Marlins once again scored early on the Braves. They got a three-nothing lead on the Braves, all runs were scored off of Ian Anderson. The Braves made it a 3-2 game in the bottom of the fifth inning on another home run by (can ya guess?) Ronald Acuña Jr. This kid has continued to show huge amounts of consistent power in this series against the Marlins. And then, in the bottom of the sixth inning, with two Braves on base, two out, Pablo Sandoval is at-bat. And he does it again! He crushes a three-run homer to give the Braves a 5-3 lead. Man this guy has serious power off the bench. He is turning into a huge asset for the Braves! I think if Austin Riley can’t improve offensively, the Braves will let Sandoval play more games at third base since that is his natural position. Starling Marte hit a solo home run for the Marlins in the top of the seventh to make it a 5-4 game.

Top of the ninth inning, A.J. Minter is on the mound for the Braves to try and earn the save and a Braves win. Instead of sealing the win, he blew the save. He allowed to Marlins to cross the plate. One on a double by Adam Duvall and the other on a single by Garrett Cooper that scored Duvall. Man, the Braves bullpen is having serious problems keeping a lead. That has to change if the Braves want to win games and ultimately clinch the division and be successful in the postseason.

Bottom of the ninth inning. Dylan Floro is on the mound for the Marlins to try and get them into extras so they can have a shot at winning the game and sweeping the Braves. The Braves had other ideas. Ender Inciarte leads off the inning with a single. Acuña does the same thing, and Ender moves to second. No body is out, and Freddie Freeman is up to hit. He ends up walking to load the bases, still there is no one out. Travis d’Arnaud strikes out and then my man, Ozzie Albies, gets walked with the bases loaded and the tying run comes in to score. And then…Dansby Swanson is up to bat. On the first pitch he sees, he lines it into left field, the Braves walk it off and win!!

Hopefully the walk-off will give the Braves more momentum going into the series with the Chicago Cubs and they will start to liven up more and win more ball games.

Braves Clinch the Eastern Division For the 3rd Straight Year!!

The Braves started off this series with the Miami Marlins with a close 5-4 victory, and last night the Braves pulled off another victory. But this one was EVEN BETTER… winning 11-1, the Atlanta Braves clinched the National League East for the third straight year. They have also made major league history, when they picked up their 20th Division Title.

GAME WRAP:

Bryce Wilson pitched tonight for the Braves and surprised us all with five scoreless innings and five strikeouts. Considering all of the struggles that the Braves’ rotation has gone through this 2020 season — first losing Soroka for the season, then losing Max Fried for a two weeks. Not to mention… Cole Hamels, who started the season on the IL for the Braves and made one start against the Orioles then went back on the IL and is most likely out for the postseason — our team has proven that we have the perserverance to play hard and win.

The Braves’ bats also came alive tonight! Marcell Ozuna – what a player! He got things started for the Braves tonight with a solo-home run in the first inning. He also sent a bomb out of the park in the eighth inning. He now leads the NL in home runs and RBIs. The Braves hit a total of five home runs tonight. Two by Ozuna, one by Ozzie Albies, one by Dansby Swanson, and one by MVP candidate Freddie Freeman!

Considering everything with COVID in 2020, this clinching celebration was different. But is wasn’t just different due to COVID. The Braves went into this season with a different mindset than the last couple of postseason runs. They went into Spring Training 2020 with the mindset of, “we are going to clinch the division this year and make it further into the post-season.”

Last year’s post-season run was disappointing. The Braves made it to game five after blowing game four against the St. Louis Cardinals. They gave up 10 runs in the first inning and ended their postseason run with a loss of 13-1. BUT… the Atlanta Braves -right now- are quite possibly going to face their postseason rivals the Cardinals in the Division Series, and the Braves have a different ending in mind than last time!

What a night it was for the Atlanta Braves! Clinching the NL East for the third year in a row and gaining their 20th division title is flat out amazing! The most division titles in in major league history.

Braves vs Mets Series Wrap

This was a good series for the Braves. It was also the last time the Braves will see the Mets until mid September.

Game one: Sean Newcomb vs Rick Porcello

This game was the best come-from-behind win I’ve ever seen! Not to mention, it was by far the best Braves game of the 2020 season (so far). Starting off to a good start, the Braves took the lead 2-0 in the bottom of the first. However, the Mets weren’t going down easily. After the Mets scored two in the top of the fourth, and having a six-run inning in the top of the fifth, the score was 8-2. Braves scored three in the bottom of the fifth making it an 8-5 game, but things still didn’t look good for the Braves. To make things worse, the Mets scored two more in the top of the sixth maiking it a 10-6 game. Yet the Braves – being the relentless team that they are – scored one in the bottom of the sixth and didn’t stop there! Dansby started the rally in the bottom of the eighth with an RBI single. Then Travis d’Arnaud, a new addition for the Braves, came to life with a bases-clearing double and took the game to a WHOLE NEW LEVEL giving the Braves the lead 11-10, with which they won the game with.

Game two: Touki Toussaint vs. Michael Wacha

What a game for Braves fans and Ronald Acuña Jr.! With the rotation being uncertain, Touki showed great promise that he could pitch in the starting rotation. He may not go as many innings as Max Fried, but he showed some promise in this game. Pitching four scoreless innings, only allowing three hits, he showed improvement from the 2019 season. The only thing he needs to control more is his walk-to-strikeout-ratio, striking out five and walking three is this start.

Now on to some offense… Ronald Acuña Jr, what a game he had! Starting off slow in the start of the delayed 2020 season with a .184 batting average and striking out a bunch, this was his breakout game. With a double and two RBIs his bat finally came alive. But to make it even better… he hit an absolute bomb to left center feel giving him his first home run of the season! He was all smiles as he celebrated with the cardboard fans above the dugout. The Braves won this game 7-1. Marcell Ozuna also hit a home run, becoming a key player in the Braves’ every day lineup.

Game three: Kyle Wright vs. David Peterson

The Braves’ rotation still showed struggles in this game. Only going 3.1 innings it was a rough outing for Wright. Not to mention he didn’t pitch a clean inning and walked four guys. But the Braves relief corps showed excellence on the mound. Tyler Matzek pitched very well. Throwing two scoreless innings- only giving up two hits- he showed that he could very well become an important part in the bullpen, perhaps even making it to the starting rotation. The Braves were very good offensively tonight as well. Scoring two runs in the third, one in the fourth on a home run by Johan Camargo, his first of the year, and one in the eighth, the Braves ended up shutting out the Mets 4-0. Giving them a winning streak of five games.

Game four: Mike Soroka vs. Jacob DeGrom

This game’s starting pitchers brought on a rematch from Opening Day. Mike Soroka was looking to win the game but sadly, in the top of the third inning, running off the mound to try to field the ball, Mike Soroka tripped falling off the mound and had to be helped off the field in pain. After the game we learned that Mike tore his right Achilles and will be out for the remainder of the season. Prayers are with you Mike! And if that didn’t set the tone of the game enough, Jacob DeGrom had total control of the mound striking out ten Braves which ultimately helped the Mets win 7-2.

This was a good series, with the Braves coming out on top. The Braves team and fans are devastated by Soroka’s injury, and we are now left wondering what this loss will do to our season. But, Mike Soroka is a young guy with a lot left in his career. Right now, we just hope the Braves can come back from this loss, creating a new pitching rotation that will carry us through the season.

Better Late Than Never Braves vs Tampa Bay Rays Series Wrap

With the Braves’ second series finished… it’s time for a blog post wrapping up the series!

Game One: Mike Foltynewicz vs. Tyler Glasnow

This game was not Foltynewiz’s finest start. Arguably it could be his worst start in regular season play, which would exclude game five of the National League Division Series where he gave up SEVEN runs in the first inning- in which he only got one out. In this first game agasint the Rays , the Rays were on point offensively scoring a total of fourteen runs and four home runs, which ultimately helped win the game. Foltynewiz got DFA after this start.

Game two: Kylie Wright vs. Yonny Chirinos

The Rays came through in this game again winning 5-2, sweeping the Braves in a two-game split series in Tampa. The Rays’ bats continued to be alive in game two-of-two in the split park series, having a total of seven hits and winning the game. The Braves had six hits, but failed to score more than two runs.

Braves Home Opener: Braves vs. Tampa Bay: Mike Soroka vs Charlie Morton

The first game at home in Truist park, and the Braves put on a show for their cardboard cutout crowd. With a great pitching performance from Mike Soroka, he carried the win throwing 5.1 one innings, striking out 5, and only allowing two runs throughout his preformance on the mound. The Braves’ bats also came alive during this game with Freddie Freeman hitting his first home run of the season, a three-run shot to right center field. The Braves won this game 7-4, giving them a record of 3-3.

Game two of home opener: Braves vs. Tampa Bay: Max Fried vs Ryan Yarbrough

Let’s face it, Max Fried is getting GOOD. In this game he threw 6.2 innings, only giving up one run and striking out seven. Winning this game 2-1, the Braves bullpen is showing that they can preserve a lead to let them win.

Highlights of the series:

Dansby Swasnon has been on FIRE since the start of this season. If he can keep this up, the Braves will have an amazing chance at making a run for the postseason and an even better run to win the World Series.

Braves Opening Day Series Wrap

With MLB FINALLY back… its time to enjoy some Braves baseball!

The Braves started the 2020 season in New York City against the New York Mets.

Game one: Mike Soroka vs. Jacob DeGrom

This game was an old-fashioned pitchers’ duel. With both teams’ aces on the mound, we expected a low scoring game and that’s what we got. Mike Soroka was excellent on the mound through his six scoreless innings, but one little slip up by Chris Martin gave the Mets’ designated hitter, Yoenis Céspedes a solo home run. This was the winning run for the Mets in the bottom of the seventh inning. Overall, even without a Braves win, it was just good to have baseball back!

Game two: Max Fried vs. Steven Matz

With the opening day loss on the Braves players and fans’ minds… the Braves gave us something to cheer for in this game! Adam Duvall was the FIRST Braves player of the 2020 season to hit a home run. It was a solo shot that hit a cardboard cutout in the top of the second inning to let the Braves score first to make the game 1-0. The Mets ended up taking the lead 2-1, and then Marcell Ozuna came up to the plate in the 9th inning. Down to his last strike in a 3-2 count, he let his bat do the talking. Crushing his first home run of the season to right center field, he tied the game and brought it into extra innings. With the new extra innings rule that the last batter to hit in the previous inning be placed on second, it did not take the Braves long to score. The Braves ended up winning this game 5-3 taking game two of the series.

Game three: Sean Newcomb vs. Rick Porcello

After coming off their first win of the season the night before, the Braves had winning on their minds again! Starting the game off with a bang, Ozzie Albies doubled and scored on a single by Matt Adams, then Dansby Swanson singled, and Freddie Freeman (reached base on a walk) scored to give the Braves a lead of 2-0 in the top of the first. The Braves didn’t stop there! Scoring Five more runs in the third inning, one in the fourth on a Dansby Swanson dinger, and one in the fith on a RBI double by Ozzie Albies, the Braves couldn’t lose. They had momentum, and it kept them hot for the rest of the game! Leading 10-1 in the top of the sixth inning, the Braves still weren’t done. Marcell Ozuna and Austin Riley both homered, giving the Braves a 12-1 lead. Austin Riley’s home run was SMOKED to left field going a whopping distance of 458-feet. And to make things worse for the Mets, Ozzie Albies CRUSHED a two-run shot to straight away center giving the Braves a winning score of 14-1.

This series for the Braves didn’t start out the greatest, but ended it a winning fashion!

GO BRAVES!

Braves 2020 roster perdictions

With Major League Baseball finally starting back, I’m going to share my 2020 lineup, starting rotation, and bench for the Atlanta Braves.

LINEUP:

Ronald Acuña Jr.-RF
Ozzie Albies -2B
Freddie Freeman -1B
Marcell Ozuna- LF
Dansby Swanson -SS
Nick Markakis -DH
Johan Camargo -3B
Travis d’Arnaud -C
Ender Inciarte -CF

With the Designated Hitter coming to the National League I think it gives more depth to the team’s lineup and gives veteran players a chance to play everyday without having to play defense. I think that the braves will play Ozuna in left field to start off the season, and if his offensive numbers aren’t very good they might place him in the roll as Designated Hitter and give someone like Nick Markakis or Adam Duvall a chance to play Left Field.

STARTING ROTATION:

Mike Soroka
Cole Hamels
Max Fried
Mike Foltynewicz
Sean Newcomb

While Felix Hernandez showed great potential in the beginning of Spring Training before the baseball season was postponed, I still think that the Braves will go with Newcomb because he stepped up in his roll in the bullpen last season and improved his walk-to-strikeout ratio. I also believe that, given the time that it has taken baseball to come back, Cole Hamels’ shoulder will be fully healed and he will be ready to pitch for the Braves in 2020.

BENCH:

Charlie Culberson
Adam Duvall
Austin Riley
Adeiny Hechavarria

With the 2020, 60 game season staring off with a 30 man roster, I think the Braves will put Austin Riley on the bench. However, when the roster goes down to a 28 man roster I think he will not be on the bench after that. I definitely think that Hechavarria will be on the bench given his defensive abilities.

At the end of the day, even if my predictions aren’t correct, Braves baseball is back! Even though the games are fanless, and there is no high fiving, the most important thing to celebrate in the MLB is that there will be baseball!

My Top Ten Braves Games of 2019

With the start of the regular baseball season postponed due to COVID-19 and there are currently no games being played, I thought that I would share my top ten games of 2019.

10. July 27th- Braves vs Phillies

Let’s face it, this games was fun to watch! Not only was it was a wild offensive win for the Braves, it was also a special return to the big leagues for Adam Duvall. With a final score of 15-7, the Braves bats were not shy of anything. They hit a total of four home runs by Ronald Acuña Jr., Ender Inciarte, Adam Duvall, and Ozzie Albies who hit a gran slam in the third. Max Fried was pitching for the Braves, and he went a total of 5.1 innings, giving up 5 runs and three walks.

9. June 14th- Braves vs Phillies

This game was suspenseful. With the Phillies taking advantage of Max Fried, they jumped out on the Braves with a 5-1 lead in five innings, hitting two home runs (by Bryce Harper and Scott Kingery). It didn’t look good for the Braves, but the players never gave up. With their late inning magic, the Braves managed to score two runs in both the seventh and eighth innings. Then in the bottom of the ninth inning, with the Braves still down 8-6, Dansby Swanson leads off with a single, followed by a walk to Markakis, then a RBI double out of Riley. It was the up to Brian McCann. After two quick swinging strikes from McCann, he got one in the bottom-of-the-zone and didn’t miss it. Gapping the ball between the Phillies outfielders, McCann led the Braves to a 9-8 victory with a two run single. This game just shows how much perseverance the Braves have — no matter the situation, they never give up!

8. August 7-Braves vs Twins

With the Braves coming off of a big offensive win the night before against the Twins, they carried their momentum to this game. Winning 12-7, the Braves showed major offensive talent hitting a total of four home runs, two of which were hit by Ozzie Albies (my favorite player)! Max Fried once again showed dominance on the mound, striking out ten Twins hitters — seven of which came against the first nine batters he faced keeping the Twins hitless through five innings. The Braves bats really came alive in this game! Ozzie Albies and Charlie Culberson had four hits in five tries, and Freddie Freeman had three hits in five tries. This game shows how much power the Braves have.

7. April 7th -Braves vs Marlins

Wrapping us the Braves opening home stand of 2019, to me, this was the perfect game. Sean Newcomb was the staring pitcher for the Braves and pitched well through seven innings surrendering two runs and four hits to the Marlin batters. The Braves hit two home runs, one from Freddie Freeman (his first home run of 2019) and the other from Dansby Swanson. In the ninth inning the Braves were up 3-2 but, our closer Ardoys Vizcaíno gave up a home run to Marlins left-fielder Curtis Granderson, and we were tied. Then in the bottom of the ninth with bases loaded nobody out, it was up to Dansby Swanson. Dansby getting ahead in the count, 2-0 got a pitch to hit and didn’t miss it. Hitting the ball into left field, Dansby walked the Braves off 4-3 with a RBI double.

6. August 18th- Braves vs Dodgers

After the Braves came off of a big win against the Dodgers’ pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu the night before, the Braves didn’t disappoint in this game. Falling behind 3-0 on a home run by Cody Bellinger in the first inning, things did not look good for the Braves. But being the relentless team that they are, the Braves scored one in the fourth thanks to Adeiny Hechavarria’s booming double off the right field wall to score Matt Joyce. Then, in the bottom of the sixth, bases lodaded, Rafael Ortega did something magical! In a 1-2 count he got all over a pitch right down the middle. This led to a grand slam off of Dustin May giving the Braves a 5-3 lead to help them win the game and the series against the Dodgers.

5. June 12th- Braves vs Pirates

This game was a long one. With Mike Soroka on the mound for the Braves, we saw something that rarely happens to him, he gave up five runs and ten hits. After a long rain delay, the Pirates got the lead in the ninth on a solo home run by Josh Bell. That left the game in the hands of Austin Riley who smashed a solo home run to center to tie the game. Going into extra innings, in the eleventh, after Ausitn Riley was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning for the Braves, Ozzie Albies hit a walk-off triple to center to give the Braves the win and sole possession of first place in the National League East! But, what might have been the very best part of that game (besides the win) was Ronald Acuña Jr. dousing Ozzie Albies twice in his interview!

4. August 2nd- Braves vs Reds

If you keep track of scores, you might be wondering why this is one of my to ten games given the fact that we lost 5-2. It was a special game for me, it was the first Atlanta Braves game that I went to. Although the Braves did loose, I got to witness two Atlanta Braves home runs. One by Austin Riley and the other by Ronald Acuña Jr. Acuña, whose homer went 463 ft! This game will forever have a special place in my love of baseball, not because of the home runs, but because it was the first game I ever got to experiece.

3. August 30th- Braves vs White Sox

This game is also a very special one for me, it was the second Atlanta Braves game that I got to go to! Max Fried was the pitcher for that game, and he performed fantastically. He struck out a season high eleven White Sox hitters, surrendering only four hits and a walk. While the Braves did have the lead the White Sox made a game of it. In the top of the seventh inning, Welington Castillo hit a three-run homer off of Luke Jackson making the game 6-5. But the Braves, with their late inning magic got a bigger lead and won 10-7. Ozzie Albies did fantastic in this game. He went 4-5 with two singles, two doubles, an RBI, and he scored twice.

2. September 20th- Braves vs Giants

Obviously this game is in my top ten… it’s the clinch! Not only was it the clinch, but it was a very well played game on the Braves part. Winning 6-0, the Braves hit two, two-run homers, one by Acuña and the other by Brian McCann. Not to mention Mike Foltynewicz pitched very well. This game is big for every Braves fan, because, if you remember, we were picked (despite how well we did in 2018) to finish fourth in the National Lueage East. We proved them wrong!

1. October 6th- Braves vs Cardinals

This game was epic. This game perfectly describes the Braves motto, “We are Relentless.” Not only was it a postseason game, it was an amazing come-from-behind win for the Braves. With Mike Soroka and Adam Wainwright on the mound for both teams, this game was a pitching duel. The Cardinals did take advantage of Soroka in the second, scoring one run, but that wasn’t enough to pull a win. In the top of the ninth inning the Braves had to face Cardinal closer, Carlos Martínez who barely escaped a blown save in game one. Josh Donaldson started the top of the ninth inning with a double, (he was replaced by Billy Hamilton), then after two strikeouts, the Cardinals intentionally walked Brian McCann. It was up to Dansby Swanson. And boy did he did come through! The first pitch Dansby Saw, a high heater, he slashed it into left field to score Hamilton. We were tied! But we weren’t done! It was Adam Duvall’s turn. He hit a two run double to score Ortega and Swanson. We won 3-1. This game is number one for me because it shows how relentless we are in any situation, and that we are better than everyone thinks.

I hope you enjoyed my top ten and are as excited as I am waiting for the return of baseball in 2020.