Per usual, Drake Baldwin is getting the start with Sale on the mound
It has been no secret to this point that the Atlanta Braves have been struggling. It can be argued that if you can pinpoint a singular issue, then it can be easy to be fixed. For example, if we could pinpoint the issues to an arm or two in the bullpen, then that can be fixed relatively easily by changing up the arms.
The issues have stemmed from all over the place. It seems when bullpen is doing well, the offense can’t score, but when the offense catches a spark, the bullpen fails. At the start of the season the rotation was failing to live up to expectations, but in the last ten games are third in MLB in fWAR. It just seems the Braves can’t play complete team games.
That being said, the Braves now face the Brewers in hopes that they can end a seven-game losing streak and start playing complete games. Today’s lineup is going to likely play a huge role in the outcome considering Chris Sale is on the mound and has been pitching lights out with a 1.17 ERA since the start of May.
Over the last ten games, the Braves’ offense has put up the twelfth most runs in MLB. If they can score close to their 3.9 runs per game in their last ten games, there is a decent chance they can pull out a victory.
Only two players have faced Aaron Civale, the Brewers’ starter for the day. Sean Murphy has two at-bats against him, which includes a three run HR. Alex Verdugo has five at-bats against him and owns a .600 average.
New series on deck!#BravesCountry pic.twitter.com/9cUcRMcSMy
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) June 9, 2025
We likely won’t see Murphy get a chance to get his second HR off of Civale today because rookie phenom Drake Baldwin will get his regular start with Chris Sale pitching and will bat second. This bumps Riley to third and Ozuna to fifth.
Former Braves’ catcher William Contreras will also be batting second for his squad. Sale has struggled against some of these players in the past with five of them having an OPS of 1.000 or higher against him, but none have more than six at-bats.
First pitch is at 7:40 EDT