ATLANTA BRVES NOTES:
Hot Streaks
Atlanta and Philadelphia enter tonight with identical 13-2 records over their last 15 games dating to June 3, the two best records in baseball in that span. They have also both won each of their last six games, tied for the third-longest active streak in the majors. During their respective 15-game runs, Atlanta is batting .320/.384/.557 with majors-best totals in OPS (.941), runs (111) and homers (32). The Phillies have pitched to an N.L.-low 2.93 ERA, and their 45 earned runs allowed since June 3 are the fewest in baseball.
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Braves and Phillies tonight open a three-game series with what is the fifth of 13 scheduled meetings between the clubs this season… Atlanta and Philadelphia next meet from September 11-13, here again at Citizens Bank Park. • The Braves and Phillies split four games at Truist Park, May 25-28.
- Atlanta went 11-8 against Philadelphia last season to win the season set, and has won the season series with the Phillies in each of the last two years…The Braves went 10-9 against the Phillies in 2021, and have now won the season set with Philadelphia in consecutive years for the first time since a five-year run, 2012-2016.
- The Braves and Phillies met in the 2022 postseason, with Philadelphia winning the NLDS, three-games-to-one, to eliminate the defending World Series champions…Philadelphia outscored Atlanta, 24-13, in the series.
- Atlanta and Philadelphia have played 176 games here at Citizens Bank Park since the facility opened in 2004, with the Braves going 83-93 (.472)…The Braves have not had a winning record for the season in this ballpark since going 5-4 over nine games in 2016.
- LH Ranger Suárez has made 15 appearances and six career starts against Atlanta, and is 2-2 with a 3.21 ERA (15 ER/42. 0 IP)…Five of his six starts came last season, when he went 1-2 with a 3.21 ERA (10 ER/28.0 IP) and 23 strikeouts…The 6-foot-1, 217-pound Venezuela native has made seven starts for the Phillies this season, and is 1-2 with a 3.82 ERA (16 ER/37.2 IP).
STRIDER VS. THE PHILLIES: RH Spencer Strider tonight makes his sixth career appearance and fifth start against the Phillies, and enters with a perfect 5-0 record and a 1.65 ERA (5 ER/27.1 IP) over his first five such games.
- Just four pitchers in history have opened their careers with more wins in consecutive games against the Phillies, with Carl Hubbell and Charlie Root winning six straight against the club in the 1920s, and Jonny Morrison (1921-1922) and Kaiser Wilhelm (1903-1904) both winning each of their first eight.
- Strider is the first pitcher to win each of his first five games against the Phillies since J.A. Happ also did so from 2010 to 2018…He is the second such Braves pitcher to win their first five, joining Hall-of-Famer John Smoltz…Smoltz went a perfect 5-0 in his first five outings against the Phillies from 1989-90.
- Strider has allowed just nine hits and 17 total baserunners in his 27.1 innings, pitching to a 0.62 WHIP…Phillies batters are hitting .098/.170/.217 with a .387 OPS against him.
- He has struck out 43 Phillies in his 27.1 innings, including 32 total batters in his last three starts against them.
OFFENSE: Atlanta scored 14 runs and tallied 18 hits on Sunday, and has combined to score 56 runs and collect 70 hits in its last six games…The Braves have won all six… Atlanta’s 56 runs are its most through a six-game span since September 6-11, 2020, when it scored 57 times.
- Atlanta has scored at least six runs in each of its last six games, its longest such streak this season…The Braves have not had a longer such streak since 1998,
when they scored at least six runs in seven straight games from April 24 to May 1. - The Braves’ .928 OPS in the month of June is best in baseball, and Atlanta leads the majors in average (.314), on-base (.378), slugging (.550), home runs (34), runs (113) and runs per game (7.06) for the month.
- Atlanta as a club has combined to produce a majors-best wRC+ of 147 for the month of June, meaning the team as a whole is producing 47 percent above league average this month…That wRC+ is 19 points better than any other club (Texas, 128).
- The Braves scored 40 runs over their just-completed four-game series with Colorado…In the divisional era (since 1969), that is tied for the third-most runs scored by Atlanta in a four-game set…Three of the four highest totals have come against Colorado – 46 at the Rockies in 1993, 43 at the Expos in 2003 and
40 versus the Rockies in 2013.
MICHAEL HARRIS II: Had a perfect day at the plate Sunday afternoon, going 5-for-5 with a double, homer, three runs and three RBI…It was the first five-hit game of his career.
- It was the first game of at least five hits and no outs for Atlanta since Nick Markakis went 5-for-5 on April 4, 2019 vs. the Cubs.
- Harris had his five-hit game at 22 years, 103 days old, the sixth-youngest Brave in baseball’s modern era with such a game…The only players do so at a younger age are Les Mann in 1913, Henry Aaron in 1954, Rabbit Maranville twice in 1913, Eddie Mathews in 1953, and Andruw Jones in 1999…. Three of the five – Aaron, Maranville and Mathews – are in the Hall of Fame.
- Over his last 12 games dating to June 7, Harris is hitting .478 (22-for-46) with four home runs, four doubles, 12 RBI, 10 runs, two stolen bases and an OPS of 1.305…He has raised his season batting average from .163 to .249 (+0.86) over that span, while his OPS has increased from .490 to .709
(+.219).
VERSUS LEFTIES: LH Ranger Suárez is set to start for the Phillies tonight, and the Braves are 12-5 (.706) against left-handed starters this season…That is the best record in the National League and behind just the Rays (11-4, .733) for the best in baseball.
- Atlanta as a club has a .903 OPS against left-handed pitching this season, highest in baseball…The Braves’ 112 runs scored against lefties are most in the N.L.
and trail just the Rangers (128) for most overall.
Tonight’s Starting Pitcher – #99 Spencer Strider RHP
2023 Record: 7-2, 4.12 ERA • 2022 Record: 11-5, 2.67 ERA
vs. RHB: .218 (32-147), 8 HR • vs. LHB: .189 (27-for-143), 4 HR
Home: 2-1, 4.62 ERA (20/39.0) • Away: 5-1, 3.63 ERA (16/39.2)
Tonight’s Game
- Strider is set to make his 14th start this year and second of the season against Philadelphia.
- His 127 strikeouts are the most in the majors.
- The next three cloesest pitchers each have 15 starts compared to Strider’s 14.
- Pitching to a 6.47 ERA in his last six starts while owning a 2.51 in his first eight.
- His 1.65 career ERA against the Phillies is the lowest against any single opponent (min three starts).
- His 10 games of at least 10 strikeouts are third most in MLB history (since 1901) through a player’s first 32 starts.
- Leads all qualified starters with a rate of 14.53 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.
- The next closest were Tyler Glasnow (’20) and Jacob deGrom (’21), through their first 10 starts in a season dating to 1901.
- His swing and miss rate of 39.1% is the highest in the majors (among QS).
- Strider’s 55.2% rate of pitches in the zone is the third highest among qualifiers; trails only Seattle’s George Kirby and Pittsburgh’s Mitch Keller.
2023 Recap
- Struckout Nick Castellanos in the fourth inning on May 28 to become 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.
- Struckout a season-high 13 hitters and finished with two hits allowed over 8.0 innings pitched.
PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES NOTES:
GAME #72 RECAP: The Phillies capped off a 6-1 road trip with a 3-2 win over the Athletics at the Coliseum in Oakland … Starter Zack Wheeler (W, 6-4) tossed 6.0 scoreless innings – he allowed 6 hits with 2 walks and 4 strikeouts … Kyle Schwarber (3-for-4) led off the game with his 24th career leadoff home run, his fourth in the last 12 games … Cristian Pache had 2 doubles and scored 2 runs and Yunior Marte struck out the side in the 9th for his first career save.
THE VIBES ARE BACK: This season, the Phillies were seven games under .500 at 25-32 when they entered play on June 3, which was also the one-year anniversary of Rob Thomson’s first game as Phillies manager … Since then, they have gone 13-2 in 15 games with a +33-run differential (83-50) and sit a season-high four games over .500 at 38-34 … When Thomson took over last year on June 3, the Phillies were also seven games under .500 at 22-29, and in their first 15 games with him as manager (6/3-17/22), they went 13-2 with a +40-run differential (97-57) and sat at 35-31 following a doubleheader at WSH on 6/17/22 … Since Thomson was hired on June 3, 2022, the Phillies are 103-80 and their .563 winning percentage is 3rd-best in the National League, behind only ATL (.670) and LAD (.634) and 7th-best in MLB.
I’M GIVING IT MY ALL: The Phillies have won five straight series (since 6/3/23: 2-1 at WSH, 3-0 vs DET, 2-1 vs LAD, 3-1 at ARI, 3-0 at OAK) for the first time since June 3-19, 2022 (Thomson’s first 5 series as manager) … Should they take this series against ATL, it would mark the first time the Phillies won six straight series since they won nine straight, June 21-July 25, 2011 … Over the last three seasons (2021-23), the Phillies are 44-24 in the month of June and their .647 winning percentage ranks 3rd among all MLB clubs behind only BOS (.667) & ATL (.662) … Over the last two seasons (since 2022), the Phillies are 32-12 in June and their .727 winning % ranks 2nd in MLB, trailing only ATL (.791).
BEDLAM AT THE BANK: The Phils are 19-11 in 30 games at Citizens Bank Park this year and their .633 winning percentage at home is tops in the National League and 3rd in MLB, trailing only TB (.816) and TEX (.649) … This is the 20th season at Citizens Bank Park and the Phillies are off to their T-4th-best start through the first 30 games at CBP (best: 20-10 in 2001, 2011 & 2019) … Through 30 games at CBP, the Phillies are averaging 39,229 in attendance per game which ranks 5th among all clubs in MLB behind only the Dodgers (48,025), Yankees (40,335), Cardinals (40,324) and Padres (39,730) … Of Philadelphia’s first 30 games at home, 16 have been sellouts (53%) and 21 have been over 35,000 (70%) … Among all clubs in MLB, the Phillies have the largest year-to-year increase in attendance per game this season at +11,540 (up from 27,689 per game through 30 home games in 2022) … The Toronto Blue Jays rank 2nd behind the Phillies among all clubs in year-to-year attendance growth at +6,254 and the Pittsburgh Pirates rank 2nd among NL teams at +5,402 … The Phils have welcomed 1,176,856 fans to CBP so far this year – through 30 games last season, the Phillies had 830,656 in attendance (+346,200 in 2023).
THE GHOSTS OF RED OCTOBER: The Phillies welcome Atlanta to Citizens Bank Park for the first time since the 2022 NLDS (Phils 3-1 series win) … The Phillies won Games 3 & 4 of the NLDS against Atlanta at CBP last postseason, outscoring them 17-4 … In Game 3 (9-1 Phils win), the Phillies scored 6 runs in the 3rd inning, which included a Rhys Hoskins 3-run homer that left his bat at 107.3 MPH and traveled 394 feet to the seats in left … In Game 4 (8-3 Phils win), the Phillies clinched the series as J.T. Realmuto (inside the park), Bryce Harper and Brandon Marsh all homered … Dating back to the start of last season, the Phillies are 7-5 against Atlanta at CBP (regular season and postseason combined) and have outscored them 71-44 (+27) in 12 games while averaging 5.9 runs per game (71 R).
STAFF NOTES: Over the last 15 games, the Phillies are 13-2, thanks in part to a starting staff that has combined to post a 1.74 ERA (17 ER, 88.0 IP) with 93 strikeouts to 22 walks and only three home runs allowed … The rotation has faced 341 batters in this stretch and limited them to a .182 AVG and .512 OPS … Phillies starters have gone at least 7.0 innings in six of those 15 games and at least 6.0 innings in 11 of 15 … Overall this year, the Phils rotation leads all MLB starting staffs in fWAR at 8.4 – MIN ranks 2nd at 8.3 and the next closest NL team is MIA who ranks 7th in MLB at 6.3 … Both Ranger Suarez and Zack Wheeler each have active three-game streaks of at least 6.0 innings pitched and 1 run or none allowed – both streaks are tied for the 3rd-longest of their kind by any Phillies pitchers back to 2011, trailing only Cole Hamels (5 G streak in 2014) and Cliff Lee (5 G streak in 2011).
SCHWARBERFEST IS ON: Since being inserted back into the leadoff spot on June 2 at WSH, Kyle Schwarber has posted a 1.061 OPS in 76 plate appearances – he has 10 extra-base hits (2 2B, 3B, 7 HR), four leadoff home runs, 13 walks to 19 strikeouts and has scored 15 runs in that span – the Phillies are 13- 3 in those 16 games … Schwaber has hit 11 regular season leadoff home runs since joining the Phillies – they are 9-2 in those games and have won each of the last six (since 10/1/22 at WSH, gm 2) … Winner of each of the last two NL Player of the Month Awards in June (2021 with WSH, 2022 with Phils), Schwarber has 35 home runs (73 total hits, 48%) and is slashing .270/.374/.696 in 71 games (318 PA) over the past three months of June combined (1.071 OPS) while averaging a home run every 7.71 at bats.
TOOLS OF BRILLIANCE: Over a four-game span on the road trip from June 12-16, J.T. Realmuto went 8-for-16 with 8 runs, 2 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR and 7 RBI while posting a 1.993 OPS in 18 plate appearances … Realmuto is only the second Phillies player in the Modern Era with two or more doubles & triples and 3 or more home runs in a four-game span – the other was Hall-of-Famer Chuck Klein from May 24-27, 1932 (also 2 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR) … Realmuto became the first catcher in Phillies history to hit for the cycle on 6/12 at ARI and only the eighth player (9th time, last: David Bell, 6/28/04 vs MTL) … Realmuto is only the 10th player in MLB history to have a 20-home run/20 stolen base season and then hit for the cycle in the next season – he is the first player to do so since Mookie Betts, who did so from 2017-18
TONIGHT’S STARTER – 98 RANGER SUÁREZ • LHP #55
2023: 1-2, 3.82 ERA Career: 26-17, 3.19 ERA
LAST START: 6/14 at ARI: 7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 BB, 7 SO … Suárez vs Kelly … The Phillies defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks, 4-3, in Phoenix … Gregory Soto, Craig Kimbrel and Jose Alvarado made scoreless appearances in relief and Nick Castellanos knocked in the game-winning run with a sacrifice fly in the 10th.
TONIGHT’S START:
- Braveheart: In his last 3 starts against Atlanta in 2022, Suarez posted a 0.53 ERA (1 ER, 17.0 IP) with just 11 hits allowed (.177 AVG) … No pitcher in baseball has held ATL to 1 ER or none over a three-start span in a season since Jacob deGrom in 2018, and only four other Phillies have ever done so since ER became an official NL stat in 1912: Cole Hamels (2014), Curt Davis (1935), Ed Holley (1933) and Grover Cleveland Alexander (1916)
- Beast in the East: Today marks Suárez’s 21st career start against NL East teams … In his starts against the division, he has a 2.95 ERA (34 ER, 103.2 IP) … He has earned a quality start in 5 of his last 6 starts (4 consecutive) against the division and in that stretch has posted a 2.06 ERA (9 ER, 39.1 IP)
- Trouble With the Curve: Suárez has thrown his curveball 136 times in 37.2 IP this season after only throwing it 198 times in 155.1 IP last year … He is holding batters to a .069 average (2-29) with his curveball and has struck out 12 batters with a whiff rate of 35.4%
- Left In The Dust: Suárez has held the 32 LHH he’s faced to a .133/.161/.233 slash line this season, with 3 XBH (3 2B) … Among all lefthanded pitchers in the National League with at least 30 lefties faced, Suárez’s .133 OPP AVG ranks 5th (best: Taylor Rogers, .070)
- Ground Level: Suarez’s ground ball % of 53.2% is 11th -highest among all National League pitchers with at least 35.0 IP and his ground ball/fly ball rate of 2.68 is 5th
- Start Your Engines: Since transitioning to a starter full-time on 8/2/21, Suárez is 14-11 with a 3.13 ERA (90 ER, 258.2 IP) in 48 regular season starts … His ERA in that span is T-8th-lowest among all NL starters with at least 230.0 IP (best: Max Fried, 2.18)
- Pitch Usage: Sinker (29.3%), Curveball (21.6%), Changeup (19%), 4- seam fastball (18.9%), Cutter (10.9%), Slider (0.3%)
HOME:
- 2023: 0-1, 6.92 ERA (10 ER, 13.0 IP) in 3 starts
- Career: 14-7, 3.36 ERA (66 ER, 176.2 IP) in 58 games (26 starts)
- 2022 Postseason: 1-0, SV, 1.59 ERA (1 ER, 5.2 IP) in 2 games (1 start)
