Takeaways for Atlanta's Opening Day victory over the Washington Nationals
Atlanta won a chilly and occasionally sloppy game against the Nationals, 7-2, in Washington DC. What do you need to know about the contest?
Max Fried leaves the game with injury
The Braves Opening Day starter was mostly in cruise control early, going 3.1 innings and scattering four hits and only one run on 63 pitches (48 strikes).
But to open the 4th inning, Fried sprinted over to cover first on a ground ball to 1st baseman Matt Olson, and then grimaced and grabbed at his left hamstring after the play. Here's the video:
Fried attempted a warmup pitching before immediately giving up the ball and leaving the field with the trainers. The team quickly announced that the exit was for "left hamstring discomfort". Hopefully it is just precautionary and the Braves won't be without their unquestioned ace for too long.
UPDATE: Manager Brian Snitker told members of the media after the game that Max Fried's injury would probably require a stint on the injured list
The Braves bullpen stepped up and showed off
After Fried's early exit, Atlanta used half the bullpen to get through the remaining 5.2 innings. Lucas Lutege, most recently acquired from the Yankees, came in after Fried's exit and was given extra time to get warm. He was followed by Jesse Chavez, Dylan Lee, Collin McHugh, and AJ Minter to finish the game. Together, the relievers covered the back 5.2 innings with only one run on four hits, albeit with three walks.
McHugh had an up-and-down outing - he got this strikeout on a beautiful 1-2 sweeper in the seventh inning, but also got called for a pitch clock violation after warmups for the eighth and subsequently walked two batters to open the inning. Thankfully, Atlanta got out of the inning after three straight ground ball outs.
Ronald Acuña Jr is a man on a mission
Leading off, Acuña opened the 2023 MLB season with a single to right field at 107.9 mph. He then proceeded to immediately steal second, getting into scoring position right away. We discussed what it would take for Acuña to win MVP earlier in the week, and an 40-40 season would absolutely cement an MVP for Ronald. His stated goal for this season, other than to stay healthy, was to "run as much as possible" and it appears that he'll have plenty of opportunities to do so.
The offense did enough
It wasn't the cleanest outing - Atlanta left 23 runners on base in the contest - but the Braves offense did enough to win a game they were favored in. Four Braves had multiple base hits, led by DH Travis d'Arnaud, who went 4-5. Atlanta only had two extra base hit in the contest, a double by 1B Matt Olson to open the fourth and a two-out double in the top of the ninth by Travis d'Arnaud that scored two. But twelve hits were enough to score six total runs, including three in the second, and the bullpen held the lead to give Atlanta the 7-2 victory.
The Braves chased Corbin after Olson's leadoff double in the fourth (continuing his terrible luck against Atlanta), and the veteran was charged with seven hits and four runs (two earned) in his 85 pitches.
The lineup was...interesting
Atlanta started the usual suspects we were expecting, but not necessarily where we thought they would be. Second baseman Ozzie Albies batted cleanup, a position we've normally seen catcher Sean Murphy or DH Marcell Ozuna holding down. (Ozzie was 2-5 with an RBI on the day). Eddie Rosario got the day off against the lefty Patrick Corbin, with Ozuna playing left field and d'Arnaud at DH.
d'Arnaud acclimated himself well to the DH role, going 4-5, but Ozuna struggled at the plate. He put four balls in play with an average exit velocity of 79.6mph, going 0-4 before being replaced for defensive reasons by Sam Hilliard to open the 7th. The Braves gave Ozuna extra at-bats in Grapefruit League action to get the bat ready to go - we'll have to see if this was just an off-day for the slugger.
What's next?
Atlanta gets Friday off before Saturday's game two against the Nationals, with the first pitch scheduled for 4:05 ET. 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 WIFN 1340 AM/103.7FM or outside the Atlanta market on the Atlanta Braves Radio Network or MLB.com.
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