Charlie Morton looks to bounce back against the Cubs in Tuesday’s series opener.
The Atlanta Braves will begin a six-game road trip with a three-game series at Wrigley Field against the Chicago Cubs starting Tuesday evening. Charlie Morton will get the start for Atlanta while the Cubs will start right-hander Javier Assad.
The two teams met a week ago at Truist Park with the Braves taking two of three. Atlanta dropped the series finale to Chicago and then lost the first three games of a four-game set against the Padres before avoiding a sweep with a 3-0 win Monday night.
Morton faced off against Assad last Wednesday and struggled allowing five hits, three walks and three runs in just three innings. That was Morton’s shortest start of the season and the first time he had walked more than two hitters in a start since April 8. Morton has a 5.86 ERA in nine career starts at Wrigley Field.
Not enough people are talking about Javier Assad’s start to the season. Through nine starts, Assad has a 1.49 ERA which is third in the majors behind only his teammate Shota Imanaga and Phillies lefty Ranger Suarez. Assad held the Braves’ offense in check last Wednesday allowing just four hits over six scoreless innings and tied his season-high with seven strikeouts.
Marcell Ozuna will carry a 13-game hitting streak into Tuesday’s series opener. He is the only player in the majors this season to have more than one hitting streak of at least 10 games. Ozuna homered in both games of the doubleheader and leads the National League with 14. Ronald Acuña Jr. had four hits in Monday’s doubleheader including a double and a triple. He was 1-for-8 in two games against the Cubs at Truist Park.
Austin Riley took part in fielding drills and threw on the field Monday, but has still not been cleared to swing a bat. Riley has missed the last eight games after experiencing soreness in his side on May 12 in New York.
First pitch from Wrigley Field is scheduled for 7:40 p.m. ET and can be seen on Bally Sports South.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Tuesday, May 21, 7:40 p.m. ET
Location: Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois
TV: Bally Sports South, TBS (Out of market only)
Streaming: MLB.tv
Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan