Marlins vs. Braves: A few questions with Tomahawk Take

As the Miami Marlins get set to face the Atlanta Braves in their first road series of the year, the staff of FanSided’s Tomahawk Take had a chance to answer a few questions from our writers at Marlin Maniac.

Miami Marlins starter Pablo Lopez hopes he can do something no other pitcher has done so far this season – win his first two starts of the 2019 MLB season. But first, the Marlins, 2-5, this year, must get past the Atlanta Braves in the first game of a three-game set. Kevin Gausman will get the ball for the Braves.

As part of a new feature with Marlin Maniac, our staff had a chance to meet up with the staff of Tomahawk Take and ask Jake Mastroianni five questions about the season so far.

1. What is the biggest surprise of the young season so far? – Ozzie Albies and Dansby Swanson have both gotten off to great starts. This is a huge year for Dansby as it’s his third full season and he has not lived up to the hype the past two seasons.

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Albies is leading the team with 11 hits and has been great from the left side, which was a huge problem for him in 2018.

2. Now that Ronald Acuna signed his big contract, will he become the biggest star in Atlanta over the next decade? – I think Ronald Acuna will become the biggest Braves star nationally just because he is a very flashy player that the media loves.

But for most Braves fans, Freddie Freeman is still the face of the franchise and will be for several more years.

3. Which rookie is turning heads so far for the Braves? -The only rookies that have played so far for the Braves are all pitchers, and honestly, none of them have looked great. Kyle Wright showed a lot of promise in Spring Training and looked like he might become a top of the rotation arm for the Braves.

His debut against the Phillies wasn’t great as he struggled with command. The Marlins will see him on Saturday and I’m expecting him to have a bounce-back outing now that some of the nerves are out of the way.

4. Which pitcher must step up in the rotation or relief? – All of the Braves pitchers need to step up and start throwing strikes as we’ve walked 33 batters in 51 innings. Chad Sobotka is a rookie who was great for the Braves at the end of 2018.

He and Shane Carle are two bullpen arms that need to step up to bridge the gap in the middle innings.

5. What is your realistic expectation of this franchise for 2019? – This is a very hot topic amongst Braves fans as many wanted the front office to go for it this offseason after winning the division last year.

But based on the lack of moves, it looks as if the front office’s expectations are for the Braves to compete this year but not be contenders for the World Series. And unless some moves are made to bolster the starting rotation and bullpen, I think that’s exactly what this team will do this year.

They’ll compete for the division and Wild Card, but this roster is not ready to compete for the World Series.