Tyler Mahle takes the ball Friday as Atlanta opens a three-game weekend set with Houston at Daikin Park, carrying a four-game National League East lead over Philadelphia into one of the season’s last nine-game stretches.
The result
The Braves have an opportunity to settle the division race in Houston, where they have found a comfortable home in recent years. Including postseason games, Atlanta has won seven of its eight games in the city since the beginning of the 2020 season.
That Houston run includes the 2020 National League Division Series sweep of Miami, played at the neutral-site ballpark, and the club’s clinching Game 6 victory over the Astros in the 2021 World Series. Jorge Soler’s mammoth homer that night remains one of the enduring images of that championship celebration.
Only four current Braves were present for that night: Ozzie Albies, Ronald Acuña Jr., Austin Riley and Dylan Lee. Albies would welcome another celebration in the same building.
“That would be amazing,” Albies said. “Hopefully, we can get it done there.”
Atlanta owns the tiebreaker over the second-place Phillies, meaning its four-game division advantage could be enough to wrap up the East as soon as Sunday. While the Braves face the Astros, Philadelphia will finish a four-game series against the Mets in New York.
The Phillies’ pitching picture changed Tuesday, when Jesús Luzardo went on the 15-day injured list because of left shoulder inflammation. Philadelphia had not announced a Friday starter, though Andrew Painter is set for Saturday.
The rotation next
Atlanta’s scheduled Houston starters are Mahle, Grant Holmes and Martín Pérez, and all three are expected to figure into the club’s postseason rotation. That gives this series a more settled look after a difficult week against the Cubs, when a thin Atlanta staff had to turn to Reynaldo López and JR Ritchie. Pérez started Tuesday, the Braves’ lone win of that three-game series.
Rotation depth has been an issue for much of the year. Bryce Elder is recovering from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, while López has dealt with right shoulder discomfort that has limited him throughout the season.
Chris Sale could have been used against Houston, but Atlanta chose to extend his break. The 37-year-old National League Cy Young Award contender will instead start Wednesday against Cincinnati after six additional days off. The arrangement leaves him lined up for Game 1 of the NL Wild Card Series on Sept. 29, with an extra day of rest.
