The Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers have a LOT in common with each other
There's a popular question going around twitter right now: Outside of your division, who is your biggest rival?
For many Braves fans, the answer to that would be the Los Angeles Dodgers.
They eliminated Atlanta from the postseason in 2020, defeating the Braves in the National League Championship Series as they went on to win the World Series.
Atlanta got their revenge in 2021, with Tyler Matzek and Eddie Rosario serving as the heroes as Atlanta won the series 4-2 and went on to defeat the Houston Astros for the first championship to come home to Atlanta since 1995.
(Side note: Most electric half-inning of that entire NLCS is this Tyler Matzek absolute ESCAPE in the 7th inning of Game Six)
As the Braves and Dodgers prepare to meet for a three-game set in Atlanta starting tonight, there's a lot of similarities between these two clubs, to the point where it brings the Spiderman meme to mind.
Both teams won over 100 games and their divisions last year, just to get bounced in the divisional round - Atlanta losing to eventual World Series loser Philadelphia, Los Angeles losing to eventual NLCS loser San Diego.
The similarities don't stop with their postseason finish, however.
Both teams saw their starting shortstops leave in the offseason - Atlanta's Dansby Swanson decamping to Chicago and the Cubs, while Trea Turner signed a big-money deal with the Phillies. And this season, both teams have seen injuries absolutely gut their starting rotations - Atlanta's missing Max Fried and Kyle Wright, with Ian Anderson having Tommy John, while LA's currently without Dustin May and Julio Urias, with Walker Buehler having Tommy John last year.
Both teams lost their replacement shortstops to injury, as well, although Orlando Arcia made it back much quicker than Gavin Lux, who torn his ACL in spring training and will miss all of 2023.
And yet, these teams are tied for the NL lead in wins, with 29, and trail only the Tampa Bay Rays (34) and Baltimore Orioles (31) in total wins.
How, you ask? Easy. An all-everything outfielder (Atlanta's Ronald Acuña Jr and LA's Mookie Betts) that leads off, a catcher that's hotter than hot at the plate (Atlanta's Sean Murphy, LA's Will Smith), and a star first baseman that's hitting high in the order and driving in that outfielder (Atlanta's Matt Olson and LA's Freddie Freeman).
And odds are, those three players will get theirs. It's incredibly hard to contain any of those guys at the plate.
No, this matchup will be decided in two places: Lower in the lineup, and on the mound.
Both teams feature young centerfielders towards the bottom of their lineup, with LA's James Outman bursting on the Rookie of the Year scene similar to how Atlanta's Michael Harris II did last year.
Both teams have older DHs sitting lower in their lineup, with LA's JD Martinez being more consistent than Atlanta's Marcell Ozuna, but Ozuna leading in home runs and more productive in the month of May.
And both teams feature a trio of pitchers who can spin it with the best of them - Atlanta's starting Charlie Morton, Spencer Strider, and Bryce Elder, while LA counters with prospects Gavin Stone (2nd career start), Bobby Miller (1st career start), and Tony Gonsolin.
And I think that's where Atlanta holds a slight edge - they're at home, with guys who have done this before. LA's sending two prospects to the mound that are immensely talented, but raw, ith a combined one major league start and four innings between them (all belonging to Stone). And more importantly, doing something new, in an unfamiliar ballpark.
Atlanta's bats need to get to them early and often. Just like Atlanta, the Dodgers have also dealt with bullpen injuries - they're missing four regulars and have worked some of the replacements hard over the weekend, with four of their arms having thrown 20+ pitches in the last three days, including Wander Suero's 39 on Sunday.
If Atlanta's bats get to LA's pitchers early, the Braves are likely to win this series. It's that simple.
Now, you've gotta go execute.
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