ATLANTA BRAVES NOTES:

TODAY’S GAMES: The Braves and Tigers today play a pair of games to conclude a three-game series in what is the only scheduled meetings between the clubs this season…The two teams are meeting for the first time since the 2019 season.

• Detroit rallied with three runs in the ninth and one in the tenth to walk off with a win, 6-5, over Atlanta on Monday night.
• Atlanta took two-of-three the last time these two met, and won the series by the same margin in 2016…The Braves have not lost a series to the Tigers since 2013…Atlanta needs to win the final two games to win this series.
• The Braves and Tigers have met 25 times since the advent of interleague play in 1997, with Atlanta going just 10-15 (.400) against Detroit all-time… The two clubs have split eight all-time series, 4-4, although Detroit has the only two sweeps between the teams.
• The Braves are just 1-6 here at Comerica Park all-time, and have lost each of their last six games here after winning their first…Atlanta has been outscored by Detroit, 45-22 (-23), in this building.
• RH Spencer Strider will start Game 1 for Atlanta and has never faced Detroit, but is 1-1 with a 2.78 ERA (10 ER/32.1 IP) in six career games, five starts, against the American League…The 6-foot0, 205-pound right-hander has made 13 starts for Atlanta this season and the Braves are 11-2 when he pitches, including wins in three straight.
• LH Dylan Dodd will start Game 2 for the Braves after being appointed as the 27th man for today’s doubleheader…The left-hander has made four starts for Atlanta during his debut season this year, going 2-1 with a 6.64 ERA (15 ER/20.1 IP).
• RH Reese Olson is set to make just the second start and third appearance of his major league career in Game 1 for Detroit, and is 0-1 with a
  2.70 ERA (3 ER/10.0 IP) in his first two games… The 6-foot-1, 160-pound native of Gainesville, GA, attended North Hall High School prior to being drafted, located just 60 miles from Atlanta’s Truist Park.
• RH Michael Lorenzen is set to pitch Game 2 for the Tigers, and will make his first career start against Atlanta…The 6-foot-3, 217-pound righthander has made nine career relief appearances versus the Braves, all with the Reds, and has a 3.00 ERA (3 ER/9.0 IP) without a decision.
  LOSS: Atlanta held a four-run lead entering the bottom of the eighth inning Monday, but allowed five unanswered runs to fall to Detroit in 10 innings, 6-5… The Braves suffered a walk-off defeat for the third time this season, joining losses at Toronto and Oakland.
• The loss was the second this season for Atlanta when leading by at least four runs in the eighth inning, joining a deafted to Miami on April 27… The Braves are one of just two teams in baseball with two such losses this season, along with Texas.

DOUBLEHEADER: Atlanta is set to play its second doubleheader of the season today after splitting a pair of games with the Mets on May 1.

• Ronald Acuña Jr. has played in 27 doubleheader games in his career, and is batting .371/.446/.899 with 13 homers in these games…Against New York earlier this season, he went 3-for-5 with a double, homer and three runs in Game 1, before being hit by a pitch in his first plate appearance of Game 2 and exiting.

STRIDER STRIKEOUTS: Spencer Strider enters tonight’s start with 121 strikeouts on the season, most in the majors…No Atlanta pitcher has led the majors in strikeouts since John Smoltz in 1996 (276).

• Through 13 starts and 73.2 innings, he is on pace to fan 297 batters on the season and established a new modern-era franchise record…Smoltz’s 276 strikeouts in 1996 stand as the current mark.
• Strider eclipsed 100 strikeouts in his start on May 28, reaching the mark in 61.0 innings on the season…Per Elias, he became the fastest starting pitcher in baseball since 1893, when the mound was set to its current distance, to reach 100 strikeouts… Jacob deGrom held the previous record, reaching 100 strikeouts in 61.2 innings in 2021.
• Strider has induced 270 swings-and-misses this season, easily the most in baseball and 49 more than any other pitcher…TB’s Shane McClanahan ranks second with 221…Strider has done so on 1,286 total pitches, and generates a swing-and-miss on 21.0% of his offerings.
• He induced 32 swings-and-misses in his start on May 12 at Toronto, a new career high…The 32 swings-and-misses are the most by a Braves pitcher in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008), and Strider now owns four of the top six swing-and-miss performances for Atlanta in that span.

STARTING PITCHING: Charlie Morton pitched 5.2 scoreless innings for Atlanta Monday night, fanning eight…Atlanta’s starters on the season have combined to go 22-15 (.594) with a 3.78 ERA (146 ER/348.0 IP).

• The Braves 3.78 ERA from their starting rotation is best in the National League, their 38 home runs allowed are tied with the Cubs for the fewest, and their 362 strikeouts trail just the Marlins (372) for most in the N.L.

SUMMER MONTHS: Despite losing two straight games to Washington and Detroit, Atlanta’s 7-3 (.700) record is tied for second best in baseball in the month of June…Only Arizona (8-3, .727) has been better.

• Since the Braves began their streak of five straight N.L. East titles in 2018, their .610 winning percentage from June-October is third-best in the majors, trailing the Los Angeles Dodgers (.661) and Houston Astros (.621).
• In June specifically, Atlanta’s .636 winning percentage since 2018 is the best in baseball

Tonight’s Starting Pitcher – #99 Spencer Strider RHP
2023 Record: 6-2, 3.79 ERA • 2022 Record: 11-5, 2.67 ERA
vs. RHB: .196 (26-133), 5 HR • vs. LHB: .191 (26-for-136), 4 HR
Home: 2-1, 4.62 ERA (20 ER/39.0) • Away: 4-1, 2.83 ERA (11/34.2)

Today’s Game

• Strider is set to make his 14th start this year and first career appearance against Detroit.
• Is 1-1 with a 2.78 in six interleague appearances.
• Leads the majors with 121 strikeouts.
• Leads all qualified starters with a rate of 14.78 strikeouts per nine innings this season.
• Dating to 1901, his 15.14 K/9 rate is the highest of any player through 10 starts to open a season.
• His swing and miss rate of 39.4% is the highest in the majors (among QS).
• Strider’s 55.8% rate of pitches in the zone is the third highest among qualifiers; trails only Seattle’s George Kirby and Pittsburgh’s Mitch Keller.
• Surrendered a career-most eight runs in his last start against New York (NL).
• Owns a career 7.23 ERA against the Mets.
• Sporting a combined 2.54 ERA against all other opponents.

2023 Recap

• His 10 games of at least 10 strikeouts are third most in MLB history (since 1901) through a player’s first 32 starts.
• With his strikeout of Nick Castellanos in the fourth inning on May 28, he became the fastest starting pitcher, by innings pitched (61.0), to reach 100 strikeouts in a season, since the mound was moved to its current distance in 1893…Jacob deGrom, then of New York (NL) was the previous record-holder, doing so in 61.2 innings in 2021…Strider bested his own franchise record, set last season in 64.2 innings.
• Struckout J.T. Realmuto to reach 300 on his career.
• Strider became the 13th player in major league history to record at least 300 strikeouts in 44 career appearances or less and first since Shane Bieber in 2018.
• Of the other 12 pitchers, Strider is the only one to have more than two relief appearances in his first 44 outings.
• Snapped a streak of 12 consecutive games with at least eight strikeouts on May 17.
• Tied Hall-of-Famers Nolan Ryan and Randy Johnson for the seventh longest such streak in the live ball era.
• Only Hall-of-Famers Ryan, Johnson, Pedro Martínez and active pitchers Corey Kluber and Shane Bieber have longer streaks.
• Struck out 12 hitters on May 12 at Toronto, giving Strider nine games of at least 10 strikeouts; the most through a player’s first 41 appearances in franchise history(1901).
• The next closest were Brandon Beachy, Tommy Hanson, and Julio Teheran with three each in their first 41 outings.
• Tied with Noah Syndergaard, Kerry Wood, and Al Downing for seventh most in MLB history (dating to 1901) through a player’s first 41 games.
• On May 1 against New York (NL) Strider snapped his streak of nine consecutive games with at least nine strikeouts that begun on September 1, 2022.
• It is tied for third-longest such streak in the modern era (since 1900).
• Passed Hall-of-Famer John Smoltz for the longest streak in franchise history.
• Carried a perfect game into the seventh inning in his last start against Miami until he lost his bid on a Matt Olson error.
• Maintained a no-hitter through 7.1 innings; broken up on a single by Jean Segura.
• Struckout a season-high 13 hitters and finished with two hits allowed over 8.0 innings pitched.

Tonight’s Starting Pitcher – #46 Dylan Dodd LHP
2023 Record: 2-1, 6.64 ERA • 2023 Record (MiLB): 1-3, 6.67 ERA
vs. RHB: .333 (22-66), 3 HR • vs. LHB: .429 (9-21) 2 HR
Home: 0-1, 10.61 ERA (11 ER/ 9.1 IP) • Away: 2-0, 3.27 ERA (4 ER/11.0 IP)

Today’s Game

• Set to make his fifth major league start.
• Went 5.0 innings while allowing seven hits and four runs in his last start against Philadelphia on May 25.
• Was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett on April 10, recalled to Atlanta on May 4 and later optioned again to the Stripers following his start.
• Went 2-4 with a 7.07 ERA in eight starts with the Stripers.
• Ranked by MLB.com as Atlanta’s No. 10 overall prospect, he has compiled a 13-14 record and a 4.28 ERA (87 ER/183.0 IP) over 36 career starts in the minors.
• Originally selected by Atlanta in the third round of the 2021 First-Year Player Draft, Dodd attended Southeast Missouri State University which is located just 115 miles from Busch Stadium.
• Played his first full professional season last year, and split the year between High-A Rome, Double-A Mississippi and Triple-A Gwinnett.
• Pitched to a 12-9 record and a 3.36 ERA over 26 starts, fanning 153 in 142.0 innings.

2023 Recap

• Earned the win in Miami on May 4 after pitching 6.0 innings, allowing eight hits, three runs, three walks and a home run in Atlanta’s 6-3 victory during his last start on May 4.
• Became the 10th pitcher in Atlanta franchise history to earn two wins in their first three career starts and first since Ian Anderson 2020.
• In his major league debut held the Cardinals to one run and six hits over 5.0 innings pitched while earning his first career win.
• Dodd was the 10th Braves pitcher since 1900 to debut with a start against the Cardinals, but the first to do so in nearly 30 years…Brad Woodall was the last to start against St. Louis in his debut, doing so on July 22, 1994 in the second game of a doubleheader.
• Joined Tom Tuckey as the only other Braves pitcher in franchise history to beat the Cardinals in their debuts.
• Tuckey pitched a seven-hit shutout for the Boston Doves on August 11, 1908. against St. Louis.
• Made his major league debut on April 4, while LH Jared Shuster made the first appearance of his own major league career the following day.
• The Braves franchise dates to 1876, and the club has never had two starting pitchers debut within the first five games of a season.

DETROIT TIGERS NOTES:

TIGERS-BRAVES RAINED OUT ON TUESDAY: Due to continued inclement weather and heavy rainfall, last night’s game against the Braves was postponed. The game will be made up as part of a straight doubleheader today.

ROSTER MOVE: The Tigers have announced the following roster move: *Named RHP Braden Bristo as the 27th man for today’s doubleheader

LET’S PLAY TWO: The Tigers today will play their fourth doubleheader of the season, which leads all Major League clubs. Detroit swept a twin bill from Cleveland on April 18, split two games with Baltimore on April 29 and won both contests against New York (NL) on May 3.

TORK WALKS IT OFF: Spencer Torkelson was one of several heroes for the Tigers on Monday, hitting a two-run homer in the ninth to cut Atlanta’s lead to one and then driving in the game-winning run with a single in the 10th, his first career walk-off hit. His homer in the ninth inning traveled 440 feet, the longest of his career and tied with Riley Greene for the longest by a Tiger this season.

TIGERS TIDBITS: Andy Ibáñez recorded the eighth three-hit game of his career on Monday, going 3×4 with a double and a solo homer. Ibáñez had multiple extra-base hits in a game for the second time in his career (other, August 21, 2021 at Boston)…Zack Short had two hits and drove in two runs on Monday. Short has hit safely in 12 of his last 16 games with at least one at-bat, slashing .304/.377/.457 with a double, two home runs and 13 RBI.

TIGERS AND BRAVES: The Tigers and Braves conclude their only series of the season today. The two teams last met in 2019 in Atlanta with the Braves winning two-of-three games. Detroit holds a 15-10 edge in the all-time series, including a 6-1 record at Comerica Park.

INTERLEAGUE ACTION: The Tigers continue their interleague schedule today against the Braves. Detroit is 12-11 against National League foes this season, including a 5-5 record against NL East teams. The Tigers have finished with a winning record against NL opponents in each of the last two seasons.

AT COMERICA PARK: The Tigers are 1-3 on their current six-game homestand, which includes three games vs. Arizona (0-3) and three games vs. Atlanta (1-0). Detroit is 15-16 at home this season. As a team, the Tigers are hitting .244/.318/.385 at Comerica Park, while the pitching staff has a 4.67 ERA (285.0IP/148ER).

ON DECK: After today’s twin bill, the Tigers head to Minnesota for a four-game series against the Twins, the first meetings between the two teams this season. Detroit went 8-11 against Minnesota last season, including a 2-7 record at Target Field.

INJURY REHAB UPDATES: Beau Brieske made an injury rehab appearance with Triple A Toledo last night, throwing a hitless inning with one walk and one strikeout…Trey Wingenter pitched for Single A Lakeland in an injury rehab outing last night, giving up a run on two walks with two strikeouts in two-thirds of an inning.

TIGERS ON THE IL:

• OF Akil Baddoo (right quad strain, 10-day IL on June 10)
• RHP Beau Brieske (right upper arm discomfort, 60-day IL on March 30, retroactive to March 27)
• RHP Alex Faedo (right middle finger discomfort, 15-day IL on June 3, retroactive to May 31)
• OF Riley Greene (left fibula stress reaction, 10-day IL on May 31)
• RHP Matt Manning (right foot fracture, 60-day IL on April 12)
• OF Austin Meadows (anxiety, 60-day IL on April 8, retroactive to April 7)
• RHP Casey Mize (right elbow sprain, 60-day IL on February 17)
• RHP Freddy Pacheco (right elbow sprain, 60-day IL on March 27)
• LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (left index finger pulley rupture, 15-day IL on May 30, retroactive to May 29)
• LHP Tarik Skubal (left elbow strain, 60-day IL on March 14)
• RHP Spencer Turnbull (neck discomfort, 60-day IL on May 12, retroactive to May 7)
• RHP Trey Wingenter (right biceps tendinitis, 60-day IL on April 22, retroactive to April 19)

TODAY’S GAME 1 TIGERS STARTING PITCHER

45 Reese Olson • 0-1, 2.70 ERA (10.0IP/3ER)

• Olson will make the third appearance and second start of his Major League career in the first game of today’s doubleheader vs. Atlanta.
• Last pitched on Thursday at Philadelphia in relief, allowing a run on three hits with a walk and three strikeouts in 5.0 innings.
• Made his Major League debut on June 2 at Chicago (AL), allowing two runs on two hits with one walk and six strikeouts in 5.0 innings…carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning until allowing a single to Romy Gonzalez…according to the Elias Sports Bureau, he became the first Tigers pitcher to throw at least 5.0 no-hit innings in his debut since Bill Slayback pitched 7.0 hitless innings on June 26, 1972 vs. New York (AL).
• Has started 10 games for the Mud Hens this season, posting a 2-3 record with a 6.38 ERA (36.2IP/26ER) and 47 strikeouts.
• Was originally drafted by Milwaukee in the 13th round of the 2018 MLB Draft out of North Hall High School in Gainesville, GA…was acquired by the Tigers from the Brewers on July 30, 2021 in exchange for Daniel Norris

TODAY’S GAME 2 TIGERS STARTING PITCHER

21 Michael Lorenzen • 2-3, 3.75 ERA (60.0IP/25ER)

• Lorenzen will make his 11th start of the season today in the second game of the doubleheader vs. Atlanta.
• Took the loss in his last start on Friday vs. Arizona, allowing six runs on seven hits with a walk and three strikeouts in 6,2 innings.
• Made five starts during May, posting a 2-1 record with a 1.95 ERA (32.1IP/7ER) and 20 strikeouts…among qualified Major League pitchers in May, he ranked tied for sixth in ERA (1.95) and ninth in WHIP (0.87).
• Among American League pitchers with at least 60.0 innings pitched this season, he ranks eighth with 1.95 walks per 9.0 innings and ninth with a 1.02 WHIP.
• Has faced the Braves nine times in his career, all as a reliever, compiling a 3.00 ERA (9.0IP/3ER) and 10 strikeouts…in seven career outings, including six starts, at Comerica Park, Lorenzen has a 3-1 record with a 3.41 ERA (37.0IP/14ER) and 23 strikeouts.