With Ronald Acuña Jr. back on the injured list, the Braves are back in the market for a leadoff hitter for at least the next handful of days.
After Michael Harris II (0-for-5, three strikeouts) didn’t handle the role well Wednesday at the White Sox, Atlanta will give Mauricio Dubon a chance to top the lineup for the series opener at the New York Mets Friday night (7:15 p.m. EDT on Apple TV).
Harris falls to the No. 2 hole in the lineup.
Ha-seong Kim, who was back in the lineup Thursday before the game
was postponed, is back in the lineup Friday, hitting eighth and playing shortstop. Austin Wynns will also serve as the Braves’ catcher for the third straight game and hit ninth.
While Braves starter Spencer Strider has a 6.11 career ERA against the Mets in 11 outings (nine starts), the current Mets roster hasn’t had a ton of success against him.
Brett Baty (3-for-8 with three RBIs) is the only player on the roster hitting better than .231 against him. Francisco Alvarez has the best track record against the Braves righty, going 2-for-9 (.222) with a pair of homers and four RBIs, which makes the decision to sit him Friday a bit odd. Juan Soto (3-for-13) has seen him the most and managed no RBIs, although he has walked six times.
Overall, the current Mets are 9-for-52 (.173) against Strider with 15 strikeouts and eight walks.
The Mets are running a similar lineup to what they have of late with Carson Benge leading off, Bichette second and Soto third. The one change from their Thursday lineup is MJ Melendez will serve as designated hitter and hit eighth while Luis Torrens will hit ninth and catch, giving Alvarez a day off.
Mets starter Nolan McLean has limited experience against current Braves, having made just one career start against them last August. Ozzie Albies, Harris, Matt Olson and Rowdy Tellez are the only Braves who have faced him. each doing so three times.
Who’s the only one who managed a hit against him? That would be Tellez, who had two singles and is not in the lineup. Those Braves have struck out five times against him and walked none.
This game is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. at Citi Field. Let’s see what the Braves have in store as they finally get to take on the Mets.
