Atlanta rolls into Sunday at 25-10 — the franchise's best 35-game start since 1892 — and they get to break in their ace at the one ballpark you'd rather not break anything in. Coors Field, 5,280 feet, Spencer Strider's first major-league pitch since an oblique strain shelved him to open the year. Welcome back.
The Braves have done all of this without Ronald Acuña Jr., without Sean Murphy, without Jurickson Profar, and without a bullpen anchor in Raisel Iglesias (though Iglesias is reportedly close to an activation). The depth pieces — Dominic Smith, Mauricio Dubón, Jonah Heim, Jorge Mateo — have carried more of the load than anyone planned for, and the lineup still leads the sport in RBI.
- Day-To-DayBlake Burkhalter RP — Triple-A Gwinnett placed Burkhalter on the 7-day injured list March 27 with back spasms, Jonathan Mayo of MLB Pipeline reports.
- Day-To-DayJorge Mateo SS — Mateo was held out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Mariners while he nurses a jammed thumb, Lindsay Crosby of BravesToday.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILRonald Acuna Jr. RF — Manager Walt Weiss said Sunday that Acuna has been diagnosed with a Grade 1 strain of his left hamstring, Chad Bishop of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
- 10-Day-ILHa-Seong Kim SS — Kim (finger) is moving his rehab assignment from Double-A Columbus to Triple-A Gwinnett this week, Lindsay Crosby of BravesToday.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILHurston Waldrep SP — Atlanta manager Walt Weiss said Tuesday that Waldrep (elbow) will throw a bullpen session in about a week and could be ready to rejoin the team in June, Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal reports.
- suspensionJurickson Profar LF — Profar will miss the full 2026 season after the appeal of his 162-game PED suspension was denied Thursday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILDylan Dodd RP — Dodd (back) is expected to begin a minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett in the coming days, Lindsay Crosby of BravesToday.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILDanny Young RP — Atlanta transferred Young (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Saturday.
- Day-To-DayBrayan Castillo RP — The Rockies announced Monday that Castillo is dealing with right lat tightness and has been shut down from throwing while undergoing treatment for the injury, TheDNVR.com reports.
- Day-To-DayCase Williams SP — Williams is currently slowed by a stress reaction in his right triceps, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.
- Day-To-DayJared Thomas CF — The Rockies announced Monday that Thomas hasn't been participating in spring training while he recovers from offseason surgery to address a fractured hamate bone in his right wrist, TheDNVR.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILRyan Feltner SP — Feltner (elbow) threw a bullpen session Tuesday and is likely to begin a rehab assignment shortly, MLB.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILRJ Petit RP — The Rockies transferred Petit (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Thursday, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILMcCade Brown SP — The Rockies transferred Brown (shoulder) to the 60-day injured list Saturday.
- 60-Day-ILPierson Ohl RP — The Rockies placed Ohl (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Wednesday.
- 60-Day-ILKris Bryant DH — Bryant said Tuesday that the ongoing pain in his back continues to prevent him from participating in baseball activities, though he's still consulting with doctors and trainers for potential rehab options, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.
Colorado counters with Kyle Freeland in his second start back from the IL, and history is not on his side: he's 1-5 with a 5.93 ERA in 10 career starts against Atlanta. Strider, for what it's worth in a sample, has a 0.50 ERA in three career appearances against the Rockies — though none of that was off a months-long layoff at altitude. The wild card here is rust, not stuff.
The Rockies are 14-21 and have dropped four of five, with Kris Bryant still nowhere near a baseball field and the rotation thinned by Ryan Feltner and McCade Brown on the IL. Coors does what Coors does, but you can see why the market is leaning Atlanta hard.
Run line is the spot the public is pounding — 80% of the spread handle is on Atlanta -1.5, and DK has the Braves shaded to -143 on the moneyline against Pinnacle's -133. The total sits at 10, which feels honest for a Strider debut at elevation against a Rockies lineup that hasn't exactly been mashing. If you trust Strider's command on pitch one, you take the under and the runline. If you don't, this is a stay-away.