After a disappointing start to their road trip, the Atlanta Braves will try to pick up the pieces Friday when they continue their series against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Charlie Morton struggled early in Thursday’s opener and it never got much better for the Braves who suffered a 12-1 loss. Atlanta’s defense let them down as four of the 12 runs were unearned, but they also managed just six hits with their lone run coming on a solo shot by Ozzie Albies in the ninth inning.
Eddie Rosario committed two of Atlanta’s three errors on the evening and now has three in just seven games played this season. Albies had a throwing error as well. Brian Snitker said after the game that he wasn’t concerned about the outfield defense, but is a less than ideal situation currently.
Kyle Wright will make his second start of the season Friday and will be looking to build off of a solid debut. Wright has been inconsistent over his short major league career but cited a confidence boost following his performance in the 2021 World Series. Wright was much more aggressive in the strike zone in his first start where he allowed just two hits and a walk over six scoreless innings against the Reds. Wright has a career walk-rate of 14.2 percent so seeing him take a step in the right direction in that department is encouraging.
For the Padres, rookie left-hander MacKenzie Gore will make his major league debut in place of Blake Snell who is sidelined with an adductor strain. Gore was the third overall pick in the 2017 MLB Draft and has had an up and down trip through the minors. Gore made 12 starts across four levels of the minors in 2021 posting a 3.93 ERA in 50 1/3 innings pitched. He went to the Arizona Fall League where he allowed 15 hits and eight earned runs in just 11 1/3 innings. He made one start at Triple A this season allowing two hits while striking out seven over five shutout innings.
Friday’s game is scheduled to get underway at 9:40 p.m. ET and can be seen on Bally Sports Southeast.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Friday, April 15, 9:40 p.m. ET
Location: Petco Park, San Diego, California
TV: Bally Sports Southeast
Streaming: MLB.tv
Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan
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