SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS NOTES:
No team release available.
ATLANTA BRAVES NOTES:
Shutouts
The Braves shut out the Yankees in each of the final two games of their series this week, winning on Tuesday, 5-0, and Wednesday, 2-0. The efforts marked Atlanta’s first consecutive shutouts since 2021, when it held the Mets scoreless on June 21-22. The Braves have not thrown three straight shutouts since blanking the Cardinals in each of the final three games of the 2015 season, October 2-4. Atlanta has pitched a shutout in four of its last seven games dating to August 11. No other team in baseball has thrown more than one since that date.
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Braves and Giants tonight open a three-game weekend series in what is the first of six scheduled meetings between the teams this season… The two will also play next weekend in a three-game set at Oracle Park in San Francisco.
- Atlanta went 4-3 against San Francisco last season, and has not lost the season set with the Giants since 2016…In the five seasons since, the Braves are 19-14 (.576) against the Giants, winning five-ofseven games in 2019 and four-of-seven in 2017… The clubs split six games in both 2021 and 2018.
- The Braves went 3-1 against the Giants here at Truist Park last season, and are 10-7 (.588) against them here since the facility opened in 2017…Atlanta has lost just one of the five series played between the clubs here, getting swept in three games in 2018.
- RH Spencer Strider is winless in two career starts against San Francisco, going 0-1 with an 8.31 ERA and allowing 15 hits and nine runs, eight earned, in just 8.2 innings…Atlanta has lost both starts…The 6-foot-0, 195-pound right-hander tonight makes his 25th turn of the season for Atlanta, and is 13-4 with a 3.75 ERA (58 ER/139.1 IP) and a majors-most 217 strikeouts.
- RH Alex Cobb has never lost to Atlanta, compiling a 2-0 record and a 1.29 ERA (3 ER/21.0 IP) in three career turns versus the Braves…The 6-foot3, 205-pound native of Boston, MA, made one start against Atlanta last season and pitched 7.0 scoreless innings to earn the win…In 22 starts for the Giants this season, he is 6-4 with a 3.62 ERA (49 ER/121.2 IP).
WIN: The Braves shut out the Yankees on Wednesday night, 2-0, to complete a three-game sweep of New York…Atlanta allowed just three total runs in the three games, outscoring New York, 18-3.
- Atlanta is in the middle of playing 10-of-13 games against teams from New York, with its only break the three games this weekend with San Francisco… The Braves are 6-1 over the first seven of these games, and 11-2 with a +55 run differential (100- 45) in 13 games versus teams from New York this season.
- Wednesday’s shutout was the 13th of the season for the Braves, tied with the Guardians for most in the majors.
- The Braves and Yankees drew 40,743 fans on Wednesday, Atlanta’s 43rd sellout of the season… That total is a new single-season sellout record since Truist Park opened in 2017.
ALUMNI WEEKEND: The Braves tonight begin to celebrate their annual Alumni Weekend, with over 50 former Braves expected to attend.
- Tomorrow, the organization will induct legends Fred Tenney (posthumously) and Rico Carty into the Braves Hall of Fame.
LOTS OF WINS: Atlanta’s next win will be the 11,000th in franchise history, dating to the club’s inclusion as a founding member of the National League in 1876.
- Per Elias, only two franchises in MLB history have amassed more than 11,000 wins…The Giants, who the Braves play tonight, have 11,446, and the Chicago Cubs have 11,222.
- The Cardinals and Dodgers have both eclipsed 11,000 wins as a franchise, but played in the independent American Association before joining the National League.
OZUNA STREAKING: DH Marcell Ozuna collected one of Atlanta’s three hits on Wednesday night, a second-inning double to extend his hitting streak to a season-best 14 games…The run dates to August 4, during which he has batted .340/.431/.580 with two homers and 11 RBI.
- Ozuna’s run is the longest active streak in baseball.
- He has had just three longer streaks in his career… He compiled a 15-game run in 2014, and had 16-game streaks in both 2013 and 2016.
- Ozuna batted .085/.194/.203 with a wRC+ of nine over 18 games in March and April…In 86 games since, he has batted .276/.347/.533 with a wRC+ of 133, meaning he has been 33% better than league average since May 1.
MATT OLSON: Atlanta tonight plays its 121st game of the season, and Matt Olson is just the fifth batter in N.L. history with at least 80 walks and 40 home runs through his team’s first 120 games…He has 43 homers and 80 walks.
- Per StatsPerform, Olson joins Sammy Sosa (2001, 2002), Barry Bonds (2001), Mark McGwire (1998, 1999) and Hack Wilson (1930).
- Olson’s 43 home runs already stand as a career most, and his 80 walks stand just eight short of his career high-total set in 2021.
- Olson is walking a career-best 14.9% of the time, the seventh-highest rate in the majors, and his 80 total bases-on-balls are fewer than only Juan Soto (103) and Kyle Schwarber (89).
BULLPEN: Three Atlanta relievers – Pierce Johnson, Kirby Yates & Raisel Iglesias – each pitched 1.0 perfect inning with a strikeout on Wednesday, and Atlanta’s 1.86
ERA in relief this month is second lowest in baseball.
- On the season, the Braves’ 3.44 ERA (164 ER/428.2 IP) in relief is lowest in the National League, and behind just the Yankees (3.19) and Mariners (3.42)
for best in the majors. - Johnson has yet to allow an earned run for Atlanta since the Braves acquired him on July 24, yielding just one unearned tally in 10.1 innings over 10 appearances.
Tonight’s Starting Pitcher – #99 Spencer Strider RHP
2023 Record: 13-4, 3.75 ERA • 2022 Record: 11-5, 2.67 ERA
vs. RHB: .210 (55-262), 10 HR • vs. LHB: .217 (56-for-258), 8 HR
Home: 5-2, 4.45 ERA (33/71.1) • Away: 8-2, 3.31 ERA (25/68.0)
Tonight’s Game
- Set to make his first start against San Francisco this season and 25th on the year.
- Leads the majors with 217 strikeouts (Kevin Gausman ranks second with 187).
- Pitching to a 2.80 FIP despite owning a 3.75 ERA this season.
- Strider has nine double-digit strikeout efforts this season; only Hall-of-Famer John Smoltz (12) has more in a single season in franchise history.
- Strider’s 13 wins are tied for the most in the majors.
- Leads all qualified starters with a rate of 14.02 strikeouts per nine innings this season.
- His swing and miss rate of 40.1% is the highest in the majors (among QS).
- His 15 games with at least 10 strikeouts are the second most in MLB history (1901) through a player’s first 41 starts; trails only Dwight Gooden (17).
2023 Recap
- Struck out at least nine in eight consecutive starts, it was longest streak in the majors this season.
- Strider’s two seperate five- and eight-game streaks of at least nine strikeouts are the longest in baseball this year.
- Strider truck out Shohei Ohtani (LAA) for his 200th strikeout of the season.
- Broke his own record – becoming the fastest pitcher, by innings pitched (123.1) to reach the 200 strikeout plateau within a single season since the mound moved to its current distance in 1893.
- Last year, he recorded 200 strikeouts in 130.0 innings…Prior to last season, Hall-of-Famer LHP Randy Johnson held the record, reaching 200 strikeouts in 130.2 innings in 2001.
- Strider is the fifth pitcher since 1893 to collect at least 200 strikeouts in his first two full major league seasons, joining: Cleveland’s Herb Score (1955-56),
New York’s (NL) Dwight Gooden (1984-85), Los Angeles’ (NL) Hideo Nomo (1995-96) and Texas’ Yu Darvish (2012-13). - He’s the fourth Braves pitcher, over the same span, with multiple 200-strikeout seasons, alongside teammate Charlie Morton (2021-22) and Hall-of-Famers John Smoltz, (5 times, 1992-93, ’96-97, ‘06) and Phil Niekro, (three times, 1977-79).
- His streak of four consecutive games with at least 10 strikeouts was tied with San Diego’s Blake Snell for the longest in the Majors.
- Passed Hall-of-Famer John Smoltz’ (3) for the longest such streak in franchise history.
- Strider’s 354 strikeouts through his first 40 career starts are the most by any pitcher since the mound was set to it’s current distance in 1893, credit ESPN Stats.
- Became the first Braves pitcher to enter the All-Star break leading the National League in Strikeouts with 166 since Hall-of-Famer John Smoltz in 1996.
- Strider passed Smoltz (149) for the most strikeouts before the All-Star break.
- Strider joined Cy Young Award-winner Dwight Gooden as the only pitchers in the modern era to reach 300 strikeouts in their first 35 career starts.
- Through the 35 starts, Gooden recorded 302 strikeouts in 248.0 innings pitched while Strider logged 301 punchouts in 192.0 frames.
- Struck out 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…Strider bested his own franchise record, set last season in 64.2 innings. (Research courtesy of Elias)
- Struck out 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 (since 1920).
- Only Hall-of-Famers Ryan, Johnson, Pedro Martínez and active pitchers Corey Kluber and Shane Bieber have longer streaks.
- Recorded a streak of nine consecutive games with at least nine strikeouts between 9/1/22-5/1/23; it is tied for third-longest such streak in the modern era (1900).
- Passed Hall-of-Famer John Smoltz for the longest streak in franchise history.
- Carried a perfect game into the seventh inning on April 24against Miami until he lost his bid on a Matt Olson error.
