Takeaways from Atlanta's 8-0 series opening win against the Chicago Cubs

Continuing their winning ways, Atlanta picked up game one of their three game series against the Chicago Cubs, 8-0, in a windy Wrigley Field this afternoon. What can we take away from the contest?

Max Fried is back and somehow better than ever?

Max Fried missed three months of the season thanks to hamstring and forearm injuries, and this was his first start back off of the 60-Day IL.

He somehow looked even better than ever.

Fried went six scoreless innings, striking out eight. He didn't record a walk and only three Cubs batters even got hits, all via singles in either the 5th (Cody Bellinger) or 6th inning (Nick Madrigal and Miguel Amaya).

Despite missing three months and having only okay results in his rehab starts, Fried's sequences and locations were dialed in today. He racked up a better than average 35% CSW (Called Strikes plus Whiffs), and took only 72 pitches (49 strikes) to get through 20 batters.

Gem. @MaxFried32 | #ForTheA pic.twitter.com/euoH0utBvR
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 4, 2023

Atlanta, once again, had the big inning

Kyle Hendricks, who has struggled against Atlanta to this point in his career (1-4, 6.81 ERA in seven starts), looked to be cruising early in this one. He got through the first three innings with three strikeouts and no hits allowed, mixing his 87-mph two and four-seam fastballs with an 80-mph changeup to keep Atlanta's bats quiet.

Turns out, those bats were just get warmed up.

The Braves scored SEVEN runs in the 4th inning once they turned the lineup over, batting around in the inning and ultimately ending Hendricks' day.

Sean Murphy hit the first of two home runs in the inning, a nice lift for the veteran backstop who had been on a bit of a summer slump, and Atlanta finished the inning with eight hits and seven runs, including two singles, three doubles, a triple, and the two home runs.

Something something "Bash Brothers"

Both Matt Olson and Austin Riley had RBIs, with Riley's 7th inning home run off of Hayden Wesneski breaking a streak of nine straight sat down by the Chicago pen.

Coming into today, Matt Olson had MLB's lead in RBIs, with 91, and extended his lead over Texas' Adolis García (86).

Now that Olson and Riley are batting back-to-back in the lineup, they've been able to make some fun history: Their six back-to-back homers in one season is a Braves franchise record, passing the 5 back-to-backs that Chipper Jones and Bret Boone launched in 1999.

Money Mike continues to scintillate

The Braves centerfielder, who had a slow statistical start amidst multiple injuries that kept him out of the lineup, has gotten hotter than the weather this summer.

Since June 7th, that pivotal turning point for him in the New York Mets series, Harris is batting .374/.398/.638 w/ 9 HRs and more RBIs (25) than strikeouts (23) across the 46 games. Going 1-4 with an RBI and a run scored, he's flashed the leather AND the wheels - after singling to score Orlando Arcia from 2nd in the 4th inning, he then scored from 1st base on a hotshot down the right field line by Ronald Acuña Jr.

Boys scoring faster than we can post fr#ForTheA pic.twitter.com/ZQxzEenp9C
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 4, 2023

What's next for the Atlanta Braves?

Surprise, it's another day game. Bryce Elder takes the bump for Atlanta, squaring off against Chicago's Javier Assad. First pitch today is at 2:20 PM ET from Wrigley Field. The game broadcast, with Voice of the Braves Brandon Gaudin, is available inside Braves Country on Bally Sports Southeast and is available on MLB.TV outside of the broadcast area. The radio call, with Ben Ingram, is available locally on 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan or outside the Atlanta market on the Atlanta Braves Radio Network or MLB.com.

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