Albies homers in the eighth, Braves beat Dodgers 4-3
Ozzie Albies put Atlanta ahead in the eighth inning of a 4-3 win over the Dodgers, and the Braves now turn to a rebuilding bullpen and a rematch with Los Angeles tonight at Truist Park.
Albies delivers in the eighth
Dodgers4-3The Braves beat the Dodgers 4-3 at Truist Park on August 25, a game Jon Morosi called one that "felt a little like October." Ozzie Albies put Atlanta ahead in the eighth inning, according to TalkinBaseball_. Bryce Elder started and went 6.0 innings, allowing 8 hits and 3 earned runs while walking none and striking out 5.
It was the third win in the Braves' last five games, a stretch that has gone 3-2, and it lifted Atlanta to 77-55 on the season.
Recent News
Atlanta's bullpen picture inched forward over the last few days. Manager Walt Weiss said Tuesday that closer Robert Suarez, sidelined with an elbow issue, could begin throwing bullpen sessions soon, according to Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal. Reynaldo Lopez threw four scoreless innings on a rehab start with Triple-A Gwinnett on Sunday, allowing three hits and a walk while striking out four, per McAuley. Joe Jimenez has now completed his fifth bullpen session since his April knee surgery, McAuley also reports.
The roster moved around them: the Braves optioned Jim Jarvis on August 25, according to MLB Trade Rumors, and released Tyler Kinley on August 21, days after designating him for assignment.
Upcoming
The Braves host the Dodgers tonight, with AJ Smith-Shawver (0-0, 6.23 ERA) opposing Roki Sasaki (5-5, 4.42 ERA). Sasaki's last start came August 19 against the Rockies, when he went 5.0 innings with 6 strikeouts and a walk over 99 pitches, allowing 2 earned runs on 7 hits with no decision. Smith-Shawver's last outing was August 19 at Minnesota, a 4.1-inning, 75-pitch start with 4 earned runs, 3 strikeouts and 3 walks, also a no-decision. The Dodgers will also have Tyler Glasnow back for this series, MLB Trade Rumors reported August 23.
The Dodgers are favored tonight, and the total reads middling. That leans on a Braves rotation still finding its rhythm behind Smith-Shawver against a Dodgers lineup facing a Sasaki start that has been solid but unspectacular of late — a game close enough that either bullpen, still working its own players back, could end up deciding it.