<img alt="MLB: Game One-Atlanta Braves at St. Louis Cardinals" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/i-K6JAvtjUMLzSwbELY_6hE06vU=/0x0:4224x2816/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73440638/usa_today_23627912.0.jpg">
Zack Short is in the lineup tonight | Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
Zack Short is getting another start, batting ninth The Atlanta Braves and their struggling offense are facing off against the San Francisco Giants and their surging offense tonight in the first game of a three game series at home.
The Braves have scored a combined ten runs over the past four games, and five of those were in a single inning off of a struggling Martín Pérez.
There have been some standouts offensively for the Braves over the past few weeks though. Since June seventeenth (two weeks ago), Austin Riley has a wRC+ of 175, Sean Murphy has a 173, Jarred Kelenic has a 150, and Ramón Laureano has a 126. Laureano has been dealing with a sore back and only has twenty-eight plate appearances in that time frame.
Outside of Kelenic and Laureano, the outfield production has been poor, to put it lightly. In the past two weeks, Forrest Wall has a wRC+ of 76, and Adam Duvall has a 2 (that is not a typo). Luke Williams has eight plate appearances, and his wRC+ has been 22.
In a nutshell, the outfield production has been bad, so there has been a carousel of starters in the outfield. Tonight the Braves going with an outfield of Kelenic in CF, Duvall in RF, and Wall in LF.
Orlando Arcia has been struggling mightily. In fact, among qualified hitters his 60 wRC+ is ranked dead last in MLB. With these struggles in should be no shock to see Zack Short getting the start today.
New series on deck!#BravesCountry pic.twitter.com/7a7NF6ceb3— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) July 2, 2024
The Giants have Hayden Birdsong starting tonight for his second career appearance. Obviously, no player on the Braves have faced him before. However, it should be noted that Birdsong is a top four prospect in the Giants’ system according to MLB.com. He struggled in his debut, giving up three earned runs in 4.2 innings, but that is obviously a small sample size.
Only two players on the Giants have faced Reynaldo López more than three at-bats. Matt Chapman has fifteen at-bats against him and has struggled to a .516 OPS. However, 2021 World Series hero Jorge Soler has a much different story to tell. In nineteen at-bats, Soler has had López’s number. He has a .632 average with three HRs, and a 1.930 OPS.
The Giants offense has been surging as of late, scoring the sixth most runs in MLB in the last week.
First pitch is at 7:20 ET
<img alt="MLB: Game One-Atlanta Braves at St. Louis Cardinals" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/i-K6JAvtjUMLzSwbELY_6hE06vU=/0x0:4224x2816/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73440638/usa_today_23627912.0.jpg">
Zack Short is in the lineup tonight | Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
Zack Short is getting another start, batting ninth The Atlanta Braves and their struggling offense are facing off against the San Francisco Giants and their surging offense tonight in the first game of a three game series at home.
The Braves have scored a combined ten runs over the past four games, and five of those were in a single inning off of a struggling Martín Pérez.
There have been some standouts offensively for the Braves over the past few weeks though. Since June seventeenth (two weeks ago), Austin Riley has a wRC+ of 175, Sean Murphy has a 173, Jarred Kelenic has a 150, and Ramón Laureano has a 126. Laureano has been dealing with a sore back and only has twenty-eight plate appearances in that time frame.
Outside of Kelenic and Laureano, the outfield production has been poor, to put it lightly. In the past two weeks, Forrest Wall has a wRC+ of 76, and Adam Duvall has a 2 (that is not a typo). Luke Williams has eight plate appearances, and his wRC+ has been 22.
In a nutshell, the outfield production has been bad, so there has been a carousel of starters in the outfield. Tonight the Braves going with an outfield of Kelenic in CF, Duvall in RF, and Wall in LF.
Orlando Arcia has been struggling mightily. In fact, among qualified hitters his 60 wRC+ is ranked dead last in MLB. With these struggles in should be no shock to see Zack Short getting the start today.
New series on deck!#BravesCountry pic.twitter.com/7a7NF6ceb3— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) July 2, 2024
The Giants have Hayden Birdsong starting tonight for his second career appearance. Obviously, no player on the Braves have faced him before. However, it should be noted that Birdsong is a top four prospect in the Giants’ system according to MLB.com. He struggled in his debut, giving up three earned runs in 4.2 innings, but that is obviously a small sample size.
Only two players on the Giants have faced Reynaldo López more than three at-bats. Matt Chapman has fifteen at-bats against him and has struggled to a .516 OPS. However, 2021 World Series hero Jorge Soler has a much different story to tell. In nineteen at-bats, Soler has had López’s number. He has a .632 average with three HRs, and a 1.930 OPS.
The Giants offense has been surging as of late, scoring the sixth most runs in MLB in the last week.
First pitch is at 7:20 ET
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