The Atlanta Braves picked up a veteran outfielder and a hard-fought win on Wednesday, climbing back to the .500 mark for the (very) young season. On Thursday, Brian Snitker and company will aim to pick up a second straight victory and, for the second time this season, Max Fried will take the ball for Atlanta.
The 26-year-old left-hander was solid in his first outing against the New York Mets, navigating five innings and only allowing two runs on two hits and two walks. In conjunction with Mike Soroka, who was strong again on Wednesday, Fried provides safety that much of Atlanta’s rotation does not and, in this match-up, he will face a quality team in Tampa Bay.
For the Rays, 28-year-old left-hander Ryan Yarbrough is scheduled to start and he tossed 5.1 innings of shutout ball in his first 2020 appearance on July 25. While he certainly isn’t the biggest name in a strong Rays rotation, Yarbrough pitched well in 2019, throwing 141.2 innings (in 28 appearances and 14 starts) and earning 2.7 fWAR along the way.
In addition to Yarbrough being a worthy foe for Atlanta’s lineup, this is just the second time the Braves have faced a left-handed starter this season. On July 25, Snitker deployed a lineup featuring Adam Duvall, Austin Riley and Johan Camargo — while shifting Ronald Acuña to center — against the southpaw, and that construction could make sense again on Thursday when prioritizing platoon splits.
The Rays are, in short, a very good baseball team and, even at home, the Braves are in for a significant challenge as the two teams finish up a four-game, two-city series. From a Las Vegas perspective, though, Atlanta is currently a -140 favorite (on a consensus basis), indicating that handicappers put significant trust in Fried and give the Braves the slight edge in this match-up.
Stay tuned throughout the evening for all the latest.
Game Info
Time/Date: Thursday, July 30, 7:10 pm ET
Location: Truist Park
TV: Fox Sports Southeast (Streaming: Fox Sports Go)
Radio: 680 AM/93.7 FM, Rock 100.5, Braves Radio Network