Takeaways from Atlanta's series-ending loss to the Padres

Atlanta wrapped their four-game weekend series against the Padres with a 10-2 loss on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball. Here's what you need to know about the contest.

Dylan Dodd didn't have it tonight

A week after looking comfortable against the St. Louis Cardinals on the road (5 IP, 6H, 1R, 0BBs, 3Ks), the San Diego Padres never let him settle in Truist Park. San Diego got the leadoff runner on in each of the 2nd through 5th innings, and knocked Dodd out of the game in the 5th after 10 hits (2 home runs), for seven runs and one walk with three strikeouts in only 4.1 innings.

Of Dylan Dodd's 84 pitches, he only got ten swings and misses. More concerning was his velocity - after averaging 93-94 on his four seam fastball in Florida and 92 last Tuesday in St. Louis. Dodd averaged just under 91 on his 51 fastballs tonight. Combine that with his inability to land the breaking pitches for strikes, and it was a recipe to get rocked - of the ten hits allowed by Dodd, six were for extra bases, including a 3-4 night for 42 year-old Nelson Cruz with 6 RBIs.

Dodd had to throw his fastball into the zone, and the Padres took advantage.

Atlanta needs more from the bottom of the lineup

For a lineup that's already down Travis d'Arnaud (concussion IL) and Michael Harris II (back injury), the lower half of the lineup hasn't been as productive as Atlanta manager Brian Snitker could have hoped. After the top four hitters of Ronald Acuña Jr, Matt Olson, Austin Riley, and Ozzie Albies, the bottom of the lineup went 3-17, with two of those hits belonging to Orlando Arcia. (The 3rd was CF Sam Hilliard's).

Left field and DH continue to be an issue for Atlanta - Eddie Rosario, 0-4 tonight, is batting .160 on the season while Marcell Ozuna, playing as the "designated hitter", has forgotten the "hitter" part of the job description: He is 2-24 on the season, with a strikeout rate in the 14th percentile and a Whiff percentage (swinging strikes per swing) of 34%, good for 19th percentile in all of baseball.

Ozuna's poor performance is powered partly by his pathetic performance with pitches in the strike zone - the MLB average for contact on these pitches is 82.5%. Ozuna is at 68.8%.

Who starts for Atlanta?

Looking forward at the upcoming series against the Cincinnati Reds, there's a lot of "TBD" on the probable pitchers chart. Bryce Elder, recalled last week to replace Max Fried, goes tomorrow against Graham Ashcraft. After that is a TBD, followed by Spencer Strider to close the series on Wednesday and a TBD for the Friday road matchup against the Kansas City Royals.

Max Fried reportedly hasn't started throwing off a mound, so he's not an option for activation on Friday and is probably two weeks away from returning - although he has continued to play catch, so it's possible. Michael Soroka's next turn through the rotation in Gwinnett is tomorrow, but his pitch count just finally broke 60 on his most recent start so he's not a realistic option to start for probably another two weeks from a purely stamina standpoint. Ian Anderson is currently on the Gwinnett injured list and even before that, hasn't looked great this season.

If Dodd is optioned tonight, Atlanta can probably make it work with Elder, Morton, Strider, and spot start/bullpen games...but it's less than ideal, especially for a team that has ideas of another division title and a deep playoff run.

What's next?

Atlanta's back in action on Tuesday night against the Cincinnati Reds in Truist Park. First pitch is currently scheduled for 7:20 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 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan or outside the Atlanta market on the Atlanta Braves Radio Network or MLB.com.