ATLANTA BRAVES NOTES:
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Braves and Cardinals tonight open a three-game set with the first of six scheduled meetings between the two teams this season… The teams will next meet from September 5-7 at Truist Park in Atlanta.
• The Braves went 4-3 against St. Louis last season, winning three-of-four games at Truist Park and dropping two-of-three here at Busch Stadium.
• Atlanta has won four consecutive season series against the Cardinals dating to 2018…The Braves went 4-3 last season, 6-1 against the Cardinals in 2021, 4-2 in 2019 and 4-2 in 2018.
• The Braves lost each of their last two games here at Busch Stadium, but have won five of seven and 10 of their last 13 regular-season games in St. Louis… Prior to last year, they had not lost a series here since 2017, dropping two-of-three.
• Overall, Atlanta has won 11 of their last 15 games and 14 of 19 vs. St. Louis…Over that 19-game stretch that dates to May 15, 2019, Atlanta has compiled a 2.37 ERA (44 ER/167.1 IP) against the Cardinals.
• RH Charlie Morton is 3-12 with a 5.33 ERA (60 ER/101.1 IP) in 20 career games, all starts, against the Cardinals…He pitched against them
once last season, August 27 here at Busch Stadium, and allowed five hits and four runs over 5.0 innings in a no-decision…Morton is just 1-5 with a 5.85 ERA (31 ER/47.2 IP) in 10 career games here in St. Louis, and his 12 career losses to the Cardinals in total are most among active pitchers in the majors.
• RH Jake Woodford is set to make his first start of the season and his second career appearance against Atlanta…He pitched 2.0 innings of one-run relief at Truist Park in 2021…The 6-foot-4, 215- pound native of St. Petersburg, FL, has pitched in 65 games and made 10 starts for St. Louis over the last three seasons, compiling an 8-4 record with a 3.61 ERA (55 ER/137.0 IP).
VS. THE CENTRAL: The Braves finished 21-12 (.636) against the NL Central last season after they went 22-12 (.647) against the division in 2021.
• That 22-12 record last season was the best by any National League team against the Central.
• Since 2018, when the Braves started a string of five consecutive division titles, Atlanta is 81-51 (.614) against the NL Central, the best record of any NL team…In all of the majors, only Oakland at 10-6 (.625) has been better over this span.
• Atlanta went 6-3-1 in series play against the Central last season, and played to a perfect 7-0 record versus Pittsburgh.
• The Braves have knocked out a Central opponent in two of the last three postseasons…They beat Milwaukee in four games during the NLDS in
2021 after sweeping Cincinnati in the Wild Card Round in 2020.
ROSTER MOVES: The Braves today selected the contract of LH Dylan Dodd to Atlanta and optioned LH Jared Shuster to Triple-A Gwinnett…To make room on the 40-man roster, Atlanta designated OF Jordan Luplow for assignment.
• Dodd is slated to start tomorrow for Atlanta, in what will be his major league debut…He grew up in Danville, IL, 172 miles from Busch Stadium.
DESIGNATED HITTER: Travis d’Arnaud plated Atlanta’s only run in yesterday’s loss, going 1-for-4 with an RBI…Through three games, Atlanta’s designated hitters (d’Arnaud twice, Marcell Ozuna once) are batting .462/.462/.769 with a homer and four RBI.
• Atlanta’s .462 (6-for-13) average from the DH is highest in the National League, and its four RBI are tied for second most in the majors…Only St. Louis, with six RBI from DH Nolan Gorman, has more.
• Braves’ DHs combined to bat .230/.290/.369 with 67 RBI last season, and their .659 OPS was seventh lowest in the majors…Just two NL teams, the Cubs and Marlins, had fewer RBI from their DH spot than Atlanta.
• Dating further, since the 2010 season, Atlanta’s designated hitters have combined to total just 150 RBI, third fewest in the National League.
ON THE ROAD: Atlanta continues its opening road trip of the season here in St. Louis, after taking two-of-three games from Washington on Opening Weekend.
• The Braves went 46-35 (.568) away from Truist Park last season, tied for the fourth-best road record in the majors.
• Since 2018 and the start of Atlanta’s five-season playoff run, the Braves are the third-best road team in the majors with a mark of 204-153 (.571)…Only Los Angeles (NL) at .616 and Houston at .584 have been better over the last five seasons.
NIGHT GAMES: Atlanta is set to play its first night game of the season tonight after playing three straight games in the daytime to open the year…The Braves led the majors with a .694 (77-34) winning percentage at night last season.
• Atlanta had a .778 OPS in night games last year, highest in the N.L. and percentage points behind Toronto’s .778 major league-leading mark.
• The Braves averaged 5.06 runs/game at night last season, second most in the majors behind the Dodgers (5.18), and their 175 home runs at nighttime were by far the most in baseball.
• Atlanta fell to Philadelphia, three-games-to-one, in the 2022 NLDS, and all three losses came in games played during the daytime…The Braves’ win in Game 2 was originally scheduled for a 4:35 first pitch, but rain delayed the start of the game until 7:30.
Tonight’s Starting Pitcher – #50 Charlie Morton
Today’s Game
• Set to make his first start of the season and the 21st of his career against St. Louis.
• Only faced the Cardinals once last season, allowing four runs and five hits through 5.0 innings pitched.
• His career 5.33 ERA is the second highest against any opponent he has faced more than once.
• Owns a 5.85 ERA at Busch Stadium.
• Entering his age 39 season, Morton is tied for the fifth-oldest active pitcher in the majors.
• Since the beginning of the 2021 season, Morton has thrown his curveball on 37.3% of pitches, the second highest rate in baseball among qualified starters.
• During that span he has gotten hitters to swing and miss on 52.6% of curveballs thrown, the third highest rate in the majors…The MLB average is 13.1%.
• Trails only Chicago’s Drew Smyly’s 42.4%.
2022 Recap
• Made 31 starts during his 15th major league season and went 9-6 with a 4.34 ERA (83 ER/172.0 IP) and 205 strikeouts…Compiled 1.6 bWAR on the year.
• His 205 strikeouts on the season were tied for ninth most in the majors…Since June 1, his 159 strikeouts were fifth most in baseball.
• Morton’s 205 strikeouts last season were fifth most in the National League, and he is one of just three pitchers in Atlanta franchise history to log at least 200 strikeouts in multiple seasons…He struck out 216 last year…Hall-of-Famers John Smoltz (five seasons) and Phil Niekro (three seasons) were the only others to do so
• Since the start of the 2018 season, Morton’s 904 strikeouts are fifth most in the majors…Only Gerrit Cole (1,207), Max Scherzer (1,050), Aaron Nola (1,011) and Robbie Ray (931) have more.
• Started on August 21 vs. Houston, and allowed five hits and two runs over 6.0 innings…Walked two and struck out 11…Took a no-decision after the Astros rallied for a 5-4 win.
• Fanned 12 in his previous outing, and had double-digit strikeouts in back-to-back games for the fourth time in his career…He last did so in 2019, and has never fanned 10+ in three straight games.
• Had 45 total strikeouts in June, most in the National League and tied for tops in the majors…The White Sox’ Dylan Cease also had 45.
• Morton had never previously struck out 45+ batters in five or fewer starts in a single month…His previous high was 40 strikeouts, done over five starts in May of 2018.
• Furthermore, since the mound-to-plate distance was first set at 60’6” in 1893, Morton is the only Braves pitcher to fan at least 45 batters in five or fewer starts in a single month.
• Research courtesy the Elias Sports Bureau.
• With his start on May 25, became the 10th active pitcher in the majors to make 300 career starts.
• Over his first 150 career starts, from his debut through August 20, 2015, Morton compiled a 44-65 record and a 4.46 ERA…In his next 150 starts, he went 66-33 with a 3.61 ERA.
• Struck out Wil Myers in the third inning of his start, April 14 at San Diego, for the 1,500th strikeout of his career.
• Became the 18th active pitchers to reach 1,500 career strikeouts, with Max Scherzer’s 3,043 strikeouts pacing active players.
• Allowed 28 home runs on the season, the first 20-homer season of his career…Just eight pitchers in baseball allowed more homers last season.
• In the first 309 games of his career, Morton allowed three homers in a game two times…He allowed three homers in a game in three times in his final 14 starts last year.
• His previous career most over a single season was 18 homers, set in 2018 while with the Astros.
• Morton allowed 1.47 homers per 9.0 innings, the second-highest rate in the N.L…In his career, he has allowed more per 9.0 innings just once, surrendering 1.69 homers in 2010 with the Pirates.
Career Recap
• A 15-year major league veteran, has compiled a 116-101 record and a 4.03 ERA (805 ER/1797.0 IP) across 323 games, 322 starts…Has fanned 1,697 and pitched a pair of shutouts.
• Has pitched for Atlanta (2008, ‘21-22), Pittsburgh (2009-15), Philadelphia (2016), Houston (2017-18) and Tampa Bay (2019-20).
• Is a two-time All-Star (2018 & 2019) and won the 2017 World Series while with Houston and 2021 World Series with Atlanta.
ST. LOUIS CARDINALS NOTES:
RECENT REDBIRDS: The defending NL Central Division Champion St. Louis Cardinals and visiting Atlanta Braves play the opener of a three-game series tonight at Busch Stadium as the Redbirds continue their homestand versus both teams of the 1992 World Series … St. Louis opened its season by taking two of three from the Toronto Blue Jays over the weekend.
100 MANAGER WINS: Oliver Marmol is closing in on his 100th career win as Cardinals manager, going 95-70 over his first 165 games since 2022 … Only three Cardinals managers have reached 100 wins faster in terms of games (chart left) … Marmol also needs five wins before July 2 to become the 93rd manager in MLB history to win his 100th game before his 37th birthday and first since Cleveland’s Eric Wedge (age 36.143 in 2004). – Elias
BURLY BALL: Yesterday Alec Burleson became the first player in franchise history to record a game with two doubles and a home run in his first 18 career games, while also becoming the 9th Cardinal overall and second since WWII to have a game with 3+ extra-base hits in the first 25 career games … Brian Jordan (three doubles on April 18, 1992 vs. Chicago Cubs) was the last Cardinal to do so. – Baseball Reference
BIRD BATS: Through the first four days of the regular season, the Cardinals lead Major League Baseball in batting average (.373) and rank 2nd in hits (41), OBP (.426), slugging (.591), and OPS (1.017); 3rd in total bases (65); and T-4th in home runs (6) … According to Baseball Savant, St. Louis shares the MLB lead with the Dodgers in hard hit balls of 95+mph (46) and ranks 2nd in average exit velocity (91.0 mph) and barrels/PA % (8.2).
DEEP THOUGHTS: The Cardinals hit back-to-back home runs to lead off a game for the first time since Dexter Fowler and Kolten Wong did so on Sept. 12, 2019 at Colorado and first time at home since Matt Carpenter & Carlos Beltrán (April 26, 2013) … The Redbirds went yard three times in the first inning for the first time in Busch Stadium III history and the first time in any inning since their MLB record four consecutive blasts in the opening frame at Philadelphia on July 2, 2022.
POWER OUTAGE: The Cardinals and Cubs are the only two MLB teams to not allow a home run so far this season, as Cards pitching recently limited the Blue Jays to zero home runs in any three-game series for the first time since Sept. 29-Oct. 1, 2017 … The last time St. Louis didn’t allow a homer in the first 3 games of the season was 2016 (first five games).
DONNIE BOY: Brendan Donovan has hit safely in his last 11 games (14-43, .326) dating back to last season (eight-game streak), currently MLB’s 2nd-longest active to Marlin and former Twin Luis Arráez (13).
GOLD STANDARD: Paul Goldschmidt has three multi-hit games to begin the season (2nd time of career; 4 in 2014) and one of seven MLB players with three multi-hit games overall … Goldy is the first Cardinal to begin a campaign with a multi-hit streak of three games or longer since David Freese (3, 2012) … Curt Flood (1962) and Emmet Heidrick (1901) share the franchise record with multiple hits in the first six games of a season.
300 NADO DINGERS: Nolan Arenado is one homer away from becoming the 7th player to hit home run #300 in a Cardinals uniform, joining Stan Musial (June 3, 1955 at Brooklyn), Gary Gaetti (June 23, 1996 at Montreal), Jim Edmonds (Sept. 4, 2004 vs. LA Dodgers), Albert Pujols (July 4, 2008 vs. Chicago Cubs), Troy Glaus (Sept. 3, 2008 at Arizona), and Paul Goldschmidt (July 16, 2022 vs. Cincinnati) … Ranking 8th among active Major Leaguers in homers, Arenado trails only Evan Longoria (331) among active third basemen and is 15th all-time in MLB history among primary third basemen.
STILL TO COME: Aside from pitchers in the starting rotation, the two Cardinals yet to see action after the first three games are pitcher Giovanny Gallegos and utility infielder Taylor Motter.
TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER: RHP JAKE WOODFORD (4-0, 2.23 ERA IN 2022)
TONIGHT’S GAME
• Makes his 2023 debut tonight, drawing his first career start in the month of April and it’s his first starting assignment since 8/23/22 at CHI (13-3 win).
• Is 3-3, 3.77 ERA (45.1 IP/19 ER) in 10 career starts with the Cardinals going 7-3 in those games.
• Had a strong Grapefruit League season, going 1-0 with a 2.04 ERA in 5 games (2 starts). He led the pitching staff with 18 strikeouts in his 17.2 IP.
• Is facing the Atlanta Braves for just the 2nd time in his career and for the 1st time since 2021 season.
• Brings his career-best 11.1 scoreless innings streak and 4-game win streak over from last season.
• Carries a staff-best 34.1 homerless innings pitched streak into tonight’s game with his last round-tripper allowed coming on 5/28/22 vs. MIL (K. Hura).
• Has made a total of 4 career starts at Busch Stadium, the last on 10/3/21 vs. CHI.
LAST TIME OUT
• Went 5.0 scoreless innings in his final Grapefruit League game on March 20 and struck out seven in a 5-0 win over the Marlins at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.
DATE vs. RESULT DEC IP H R ER BB SO HR NP-S
3/20 MIA W 5-0 — 5.0 5 0 0 1 7 0 82-56
2022
• Pitched between St. Louis and Memphis (AAA) making a combined 38 appearances with 11 starts covering 91.1 innings pitched.
• Induced 10 ground into double plays, most among all MLB pitchers with 50.0 innings or less. The second highest total in Cardinals history for a pitcher with 50 innings or less in a season behing T.J. McFarland, who had 12 in 2021 over 38.2 innings pitched.
• Posted career-highs in wins (4) and appearances (27).
• Finished the season with 11.1 scoreless innings (9/13-present), T-8th longest active among National League pitchers and longest by a Cardinals pitcher to end the season.
• Allowed only one home run, coming to Keston Hiura vs. MIL (5/28). Faced 188 total batters, 10th-longest active homerless streak in the N.L. (32.1 IP) at the conclusion of the season.
• Since his MLB debut in 2020, ranks 4th in MLB in GIDP/9 IP (1.38), trailing teammates Dakota Hudson (1.44) and Andre Pallante (1.42) – min. 100 IP.
• Was 2-0 with an 0.86 ERA in 13 home appearances. His home ERA was T-9th lowest among all MLB pitchers with a minimum of 20.0 innings pitched and tops among Cardinals pitchers at Busch Stadium.
• Was recalled from Memphis (AAA) four times. His final recall was on August 10 and remained in St. Louis the rest of the season.
• Worked 3.1 ShO IP on 8/30 at CIN, matching his season high for relief IP (also 5/7 at SF).
• Threw 5.1 innings in his first start of the season in Game 2 of DH at CHI (8/23). Earned his 3rd win, tying his single-season high (also 2021).
• 15 of 27 appearances were of 4 outs or more.
CAREER
• Former first round selection out of high school made his Major League debut in 2020 in the second game of a doubleheader after the Cardinals returned from a 17-day absence from playing due to a COVID breakout. Has pitched as both a starter and out of the bullpen.
• Switched uniform number from No. 40 to No. 44 prior to the 2023 season to allow Willson Contreras to wear the same number he had since the start of his career with the Chicago Cubs in 2016.
• Enters the 2023 season on an 11.1-inning scoreless streak, winning each of his last four decisions.
• Since his MLB debut in 2020, ranks 4th in MLB in GIDP/9 IP (1.38), trailing teammates Dakota Hudson (1.44) and Andre Pallante (1.42) – min. 100 IP.
• Has career marks of 3-3 with a 3.77 ERA in 10 career Major League starts (45.1 IP) and 5-1 with a 3.53 ERA in 55 relief appearances (91.2 IP).
• Ranked in the Top 15 among MLB pitchers in average of vertical movement on his curveball each of the last three seasons at 14th in 2020 (6.3 inches), 11th in 2021 (7.2 inches) and 10th in 2022 (8.0 inches). Baseball Savant.
