The Atlanta Braves were 60-49 heading into Saturday night's matchup with the Miami Marlins at Truist Park in Georgia's capital city.
Manager Brian Snitker's team resides in second place in the National League East behind the Philadelphia Phillies.
On Saturday, Snitker revealed that starting pitcher Max Fried is ready to return from an arm injury, the second one he suffered in the past two seasons.
“He's excited about getting out there,” Snitker said, adding that he wants to get his pitcher back out there “as quick as (he) can.”
Snitker added that getting Fried out there for Sunday's game vs. Miami is “going to be really good.”
Impact of Max Fried's return
The Braves have a strong rotation without Fried but his return could take the Braves' success to a whole different level. The team's batting lineup has also been going crazy as of late, setting an MLB record amid an incredible power surge.
Braves catcher Travis D'Arnaud has also been in the news as of late. He reacted to his miraculous performance vs. the Brewers in a way that caught the attention of Major League Baseball fans.
Fried's return comes at exactly the right time. With a 7-5 record and a 3.08 ERA on the season, Fried is one of the top pitchers in the National League. Fried's last outing was a six-inning, zero runs given up performance against the Arizona Diamondbacks that culminated in a loss for Snitker's team.
The Braves pitcher was placed on the injured list on July 21st. He's now had a chance to rehab a similar injury to the one he suffered last season. How he performs upon his return is anyone's guess.
Braves hit the road for three series
Since Fried bowed out of the rotation, Atlanta has alternated losing and winning streaks. Snitker's team lost six in a row followed by a streak of six wins in seven games. During the losing skid, they gave up six or more runs three times. The pitching staff has been lights out since then, giving up three runs or less in every game.
Charlie Morton and Chris Sale lead the Braves' pitching staff with earned run averages of 3.94 and 2.71, respectively. Chris Sale has 155 strikeouts on the season, far and away the best total on the team. Charlie Morton has 109 strikeouts in 112 innings.
The Braves' schedule includes a 10-game road trip out west in the coming weeks with matchups against the Rockies in Colorado, the Angels in Los Angeles and the Giants in San Francisco.
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