Series Preview: Miami Marlins vs Atlanta Braves – August 16/18

After a phenomenal start to the homestand over the weekend against the Cubs, the Miami Marlins welcome a familiar foe in the Atlanta Braves to town. This will be the fifth series between the two teams so far this season with the Marlins leading the season series 7-6.

Series Preview: Miami Marlins vs Atlanta Braves

The Marlins enter play Monday winners of four in-a-row, and coming off a three-game series sweep of the Cubs over the weekend. This was an impressive showing for Miami as they outscored Chicago 23-15 through three games, which included an impressive 11-run second inning in Game 1 tying a franchise record.

Miami currently sports a 51-67 record on the season, and have risen to fourth in the NL East over the weekend, 11 games back of first place. With a 5-5 record over their last 10 games, the Marlins have the second-best run differential in the NL East behind only the Braves.

Atlanta comes to Miami fresh off a series sweep as well as they swept the Nationals in DC over the weekend. The Braves also showcased some impressive offense as they outscored Washington 22-9 in three games over the weekend.

With an 8-2 record across their last 10 games, the Braves are one of the hottest teams in baseball at the moment. Atlanta has taken over sole-possession of first place in the NL East for the first time this season with a 62-56 record, partly due to their dominant offense that displays a +72 run differential, the lone positive in the NL East.

Atlanta Braves Players to Watch

3B Austin Riley

The 24-year-old third baseman is tied for the team lead with 25 HR’s, while also ranking second among Braves positional players with a 3.3 WAR on the season. Entering play on Sunday, Riley was slashing .300/.321/.480 across his last 12 games, 10 of which he collected at-least one hit.

1B Freddie Freeman

The 2020 NL MVP has regained his MVP form in recent weeks after a rough start to the season, partly due to a phenomenal month of July where Freeman slashed .375/.470/.594 with six HR’s and 15 RBI’s. Freeman did struggle this past week, but did homer in Sunday’s win to pair with a 2-for-3 showing Saturday.

2B Ozzie Albies

Albies leads the Braves in RBI’s, while also on-pace to post a new career-high in HR’s. Now acting as Atlanta’s primary leadoff hitter, Albies entered play Sunday on a four-game HR streak which included seven hits and eight RBI’s during that span.

SS Dansby Swanson

Arguably the hottest hitter in Atlanta’s lineup at the moment is Swanson. Entering play on Sunday, Swanson was slashing .383/.412/.638 across his last 12 games with three HR’s and 11 RBI’s, and also added another HR on Sunday, his fourth in the past three games.

RP Tyler Matzek

Perhaps the most dominant reliever in Atlanta’s bullpen recently has been Matzek, a hard-throwing left-hander primarily used in high-leverage situations. Matzek has not allowed an earned run in his last 16 outings that includes four walks and 18 strikeouts.

Miami Marlins Players to Watch

SS Miguel Rojas

Rojas leads the Marlins with a 3.0 WAR, and collected four hits in Miami’s three-game series sweep against the Cubs over the weekend. Across his last 13 games, the veteran shortstop is slashing .356/.408/.556 with 11 runs scored.

1B Jesus Aguilar

The team-leader in almost every major statistical category, Aguilar’s 84 RBI’s lead the National League for the 2021 campaign. Aguilar has homered three times already this month, while also drawing an impressive seven walks compared to five strikeouts.

OF Lewis Brinson

The phenomenal recent run continued on Sunday for Brinson as he collected yet another multi-hit game. The 27-year-old outfielder now has seven multi-hit games so far this month with four HR’s and 17 RBI’s.

2B Jazz Chisholm 

The Marlins young star second baseman returned to the lineup over the weekend homering in Sunday’s win over Chicago. Chisholm has posted a .742 OPS during his second season in the big leagues including 12 HR’s and 11 stolen bases.

RP Anthony Bender

Miami’s bullpen leader in WAR, Bender is a player who has had success against Atlanta so far this season. Across 6.2 innings pitched against the Braves this season, Bender has allowed three earned runs on five hits with one walk and 12 strikeouts.