Braves look to secure series win behind Charlie Morton

The Atlanta Braves will play their second game of a three game set against the Cardinals tonight, seeking their 80th win of the season and the series victory. Charlie Morton gets the start for Atlanta and he has been back to his normal self in the second half after a rough start to the season. Morton had a 4.45 ERA with a 4.22 FIP and a 3.70 xFIP in the first half, as opposed to a 2.72 ERA and 2.60 and 2.70 FIP and xFIP to match in the second half. Striking out two more batters per 9 and walking one less batter per nine is a big driver of this improvement from Charlie.

Trade deadline acquisition Jordan Montgomery, previously of the Yankees will get the start for St. Louis. Montgomery is having a nice season, with a 3.08/3.90/3.52/3.44 ERA/xERA/FIP/xFIP slash line. He gets this done mostly from a sky-high 47.1% ground ball rate and only walking 1.67/9. He doesn’t have the most impressive stuff and only strikes out 7.76/9, but he has found a formula that works with decent effectiveness. As you might expect from this profile, he works primarily off of a low-90s sinker, mixing in a changeup and curve about 20% of the time each and throwing the occasional four-seamer and cutter. The four-seamer and cutter are particularly hittable, while the curveball is his best pitch according to Statcast xwOBA against. Montgomery is good but not an insurmountable matchup for a hot Atlanta offense.

Game Info

Atlanta Braves @ St. Louis Cardinals

Saturday, August 27, 2022

7:15 pm EDT

Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO

TV: Bally Sports Southeast

Radio: 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan

XM Radio: Online, Ch. 89