The Atlanta Braves head south after a brief, two-game set in Boston, to take on NL East division foe the Miami Marlins. The Braves sit in second place in the NL East and have moved more than a 1/2 dozen games behind the first-place Mets. The Marlins, meanwhile, have stalled considerably and find themselves in fourth-place, over 20 games behind New York. The pitching matchup for Thursday's series opener will be lefty Max Fried (10-4, 2.60) of the Braves taking on Pablo Lopez (7-7, 3.57) of the Marlins. First pitch is scheduled for 6:15pm EST.
The Braves are in the midst of a winding road trip that saw them play four games in Queens against the Mets last weekend, a brief two-game series in Boston and now back down south to take on the Marlins in Miami. Atlanta was thumped in three out of four games in New York before rebounding with a 9-7 11-inning win over Boston in the series opener. In the series finale on Wednesday night, the Braves completed the sweep with an 8-4 win, which included a two-run home run by rookie Vaughn Grissom. Grissom went 2-for-4 in his major league debut. The Braves enjoyed a day-off on Thursday while the Marlins wrapped up their series with the Phillies.
Welcome to the show, @GrissomVaughn!#ForTheA pic.twitter.com/HnsVPDU1zr
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 10, 2022
The second base position has been an injury-prone one for the Braves this season. Incumbent second baseman Ozzie Albies broke his foot in May and his replacement, Orlando Arcia, has now been placed on the IL with a hamstring issue. This opens the door for one of the Braves top prospects, Vaughn Grissom. Grissom brings a blend of power and speed to the big league club and will provide the Braves with a jolt and a perfect time for the team. On the mound on Thursday for the Braves will be left-hander Max Fried. Fried leads the Braves with 17 quality starts out of 22 overall. He also leads the team in innings, WAR, WHIP and ERA. Fried was roughed up in his last start by the Mets but was outstanding throughout the month of July. In six starts, Fried went 3-1 with a 2.13 ERA while allowing 35 hits in 38 innings pitched. Fried has faced the Marlins once, on May 29th, pitching six innings and giving up six hits and a run in a 6-1 Braves' win.