Braves take on the Pirates in first of 3-game seriesBy The Associated PressThe Associated PressThe Atlanta Braves begin a three-game series at home against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday.
Pittsburgh Pirates (69-90, fifth in the NL Central) vs. Atlanta Braves (75-84, fourth in the NL East)
Atlanta; Friday, 7:15 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Pirates: Mitch Keller (6-15, 4.22 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 144 strikeouts); Braves: Joey Wentz (5-6, 5.46 ERA, 1.52 WHIP, 89 strikeouts)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Braves -161, Pirates +134; over/under is 8 1/2 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Atlanta Braves host the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday to begin a three-game series.
Atlanta has a 75-84 record overall and a 38-40 record at home. The Braves have the sixth-ranked team on-base percentage in the NL at .321.
Pittsburgh has gone 25-53 on the road and 69-90 overall. The Pirates have a 49-16 record in games when they out-hit their opponents.
The teams meet Friday for the fourth time this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Matt Olson has 40 doubles, two triples, 28 home runs and 93 RBIs for the Braves. Drake Baldwin is 15 for 41 with three doubles, a triple, four home runs and 15 RBIs over the last 10 games.
Bryan Reynolds has 37 doubles, three triples, 16 home runs and 73 RBIs for the Pirates. Joey Bart is 6 for 19 with a double, two home runs and seven RBIs over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Braves: 9-1, .296 batting average, 2.87 ERA, outscored opponents by 41 runs
Pirates: 4-6, .211 batting average, 2.60 ERA, outscored opponents by two runs
INJURIES: Braves: Ozzie Albies: 10-Day IL (arm), Vidal Brujan: day-to-day (hip), Daysbel Hernandez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Jake Fraley: 60-Day IL (oblique), Aaron Bummer: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Sean Murphy: 60-Day IL (hip), Austin Riley: 60-Day IL (abdominal), Grant Holmes: 60-Day IL (elbow), Spencer Schwellenbach: 60-Day IL (elbow), AJ Smith-Shawver: 60-Day IL (calf/elbow), Reynaldo Lopez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Joe Jimenez: 60-Day IL (knee)
Pirates: Oneil Cruz: day-to-day (ankle), Ronny Simon: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Endy Rodriguez: 60-Day IL (elbow), Enmanuel Valdez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Jared Jones: 60-Day IL (elbow)
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
