By MIKE ROBERTS
It was an up-and-down week for the Atlanta Braves, who were swept in two games by the San Francisco Giants (Thursday’s series finale was postponed due to rain) before taking two of three games from the Milwaukee Brewers. The 48-28 Braves still own the best record in Major League Baseball and hold a 6.5-game lead over the second-place Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East.
Here’s what you need to know about what’s happened in Braves Country over the past week.
Baldwin Is Back
Back on May 18, Atlanta placed catcher Drake Baldwin (.286 AVG., .887 OPS, 14 HR, 39 RBI, 1 SB) on the injured list with a strained right oblique. It was a huge blow, seeing that he’s easily one of the team’s best players.
Baldwin returned to the Braves’ lineup this past Tuesday against the Giants, and, in his first big-league at bat in nearly a month, smacked a 473-foot home run to lead off the bottom of the first. Although Atlanta lost to the Giants 7-2 that game, Baldwin’s moon shot marked the longest home run hit in the majors this season. “Drake the Rake” has been in hiding since; heading into Monday’s game at San Diego, Baldwin is in a 1-for-17 stretch, including three straight hitless games.
Speaking of Catchers …
On Thursday, the Braves acquired catcher Joey Bart (.231 AVG., .599 OPS, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 0 SB) from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for pitcher Hunter Stratton (0.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP), who’s a Bristol, TN, native and Sullivan East alum. Sean Murphy (.071 AVG., .143 OPS, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB) was supposed to split duties behind the plate with Baldwin, but he has played just four games this year due to injury.
Selected second overall by the Giants in the 2018 draft, Bart has never become the superstar he was expected to be. However, the Braves believe he’ll be an upgrade over Sandy Leon (.091 AVG., .182 OPS, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB), who was sent down to the minors. With Bart on board, Atlanta now possesses a solid option to share catching duties with Baldwin while Murphy recovers.
Bart made his first Braves start on Saturday, as he went 0-for-3. He became the eighth catcher to appear in a game for the team this season. Yeah, that’s a lot of catchers!
An Exciting Victory Over the Brew Crew
Atlanta faced Brewers starting pitcher Jacob Misiorowski on Friday night. Heading into the game, the 2025 All-Star hadn’t allowed more than a run in any of his previous eight starts, dating back to the end of April. However, the Braves dealt Misiorowski his third loss of the season, picking up a 3-2 win over the NL Central-leading Brewers.
Several Braves were instrumental in the victory. Mauricio Dubon (.262 AVG., .724 OPS, 7 HR, 42 RBI, 1 SB) came up with a clutch go-ahead single off a 101.3 mph fastball from Misiorowski. Eli White (.221 AVG., .651 OPS, 3 HR, 14 RBI, 2 SB) was the defensive star of the game, robbing Christian Yelich of an RBI double during the seventh inning and later throwing from left field to deny Jackson Chourio’s attempt to score the tying run in the ninth. Meanwhile, Braves pitcher Martin Perez (6-3, 2.78 ERA, 1.07 WHIP) allowed only one run on six hits, and a walk.
Albies Is Coming Through
The Braves are without their best player, Ronald Acuna Jr. (.251 AVG., .793 OPS, 7 HR, 22 RBI, 15 SB), who remains sidelined with a hamstring injury, but Ozzie Albies (.284 AVG., .786 OPS, 12 HR, 41 RBI, 1 SB) is stepping up in his absence. The three-time All-Star was huge on Saturday, contributing two home runs, including a walk-off (the fourth of his career) and a two-run blast during the ninth inning as he led Atlanta to a 4-3 comeback win over the Brewers. This past week, Albies had at least one hit in every game except Tuesday’s contest.
The last two seasons were rough for Albies, who missed time due to injury. But now that he’s healthy, he is back to looking like his old self.
Looking Ahead
Next up, the Braves will hit the road for a California road trip, playing a three-game series against the San Diego Padres, starting tonight, and a three-game series against the San Francisco Giants, starting Friday. Here’s a look at the upcoming schedule, including TV information and probable pitchers:
Monday, 6/22: 10:10 PM, ESPN, Grant Holmes (ATL) (4-3, 4.33 ERA, 1.40 WHIP) vs. Michael King (SD) (4-6, 3.60 ERA, 1.19 WHIP)
Tuesday, 6/23: 9:40 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, JR Ritchie (1-2, 4.54 ERA, 1.37 WHIP) vs. TBD (SD) (1-5, 6.64 ERA, 1.57 WHIP)
Wednesday, 6/24: 8:40 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, Martin Perez (ATL) (5-3, 2.90 ERA, 1.05 WHIP) vs. TBD (SD) (6-4, 3.63 ERA, 1.32 WHIP)
Friday, 6/26: 10:15 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, TBD (ATL) vs. TBD (SF)
Saturday, 6/27: 9:05 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, TBD (ATL) vs. TBD (SF)
Sunday, 6/28: 4:05 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, TBD (ATL) vs. TBD (SF)