The Atlanta Braves will turn to rookie Spencer Schwellenbach to continue their hot streak on Friday when they face the visiting Miami Marlins in the second game of their four-game series.
Schwellenbach threw seven scoreless innings against the host New York Mets on Saturday to end the Braves’ six-game losing streak. That game started Atlanta’s current 5-1 run, including the 4-2 win over the Marlins on Thursday.
Atlanta has cut Philadelphia’s lead in the National League East to six games. Philadelphia had a 10-game lead on July 5.
Schwellenbach (4-5, 4.06 ERA) will be opposed by fellow rookie Valente Bellozo (0-1, 4.50) in a battle of right-handers.
Schwellenbach was recalled from Double-A Mississippi in May and has become a fixture in the team’s starting rotation. He will be making his 11th start of the season after setting a career high with 11 strikeouts in his last start. Schwellenbach has allowed one or fewer runs in three of his last four starts.
“We had lost, what, six in a row,” Schwellenbach said of the Braves heading into his previous start. “It was needed more than ever, and I kind of dug a little deeper because we needed that.”
Catcher Sean Murphy said, “Obviously it was his best game of the year. It feels like he’s improved every time out. I don’t say that lightly. I feel like he’s gotten more comfortable and we’ve kind of narrowed it in on what we want to do with him.”
Schwellenbach has never faced the Marlins.
Bellozo was impressive in his major league debut at Kansas City on June 26 with five scoreless innings. He was roughed up by Boston on July 2 when he gave up five runs in five innings with eight strikeouts. Bellozo was optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville afterward and has since made three starts for the Jumbo Shrimp. In his last outing, he gave up five runs in five innings in a loss at Norfolk.
The Braves are starting to connect with the long ball again. They hit three home runs on Thursday, giving them seven over the last two games, and have 136 this season. Matt Olson has three homers in the past two days and five homers in the last six. Orlando Arcia hit his 10th homer and extended his hitting streak to 12 games on Thursday.
The Marlins did not hit a home run on Thursday, ending a 10-game streak.
Miami did generate a run thanks to the speed of Forrest Wall, who was picked up last week after being waived by Atlanta. Wall hit .310 with eight stolen bases in 28 games for the Braves over the last two seasons.
On Thursday, Wall hit an opposite-field single in the fifth inning and went all the way to third base when Charlie Morton’s pickoff throw got past Olson and rolled down the line. Wall scored on Nick Fortes’ sacrifice fly.
“That’s part of his game,” Miami manager Skip Schumaker said of Wall. “He’s a good bunter and can play a lot of different positions. There will be an opportunity for him, hopefully on the bases. We have to find a way to create more opportunities like he did.”
Wall may not be available on Friday as his wife is expected to give birth.
–Field Level Media
