The Braves’ lineup brought a little wrinkle to the table for their matchup with the Phillies: Ronald Acuña Jr. is at DH and back in the leadoff spot, while Lane Thomas slides into right field.
That setup also pushes Ha-Seong Kim into the starting lineup and moves Mauricio Dubón to left field. Walt Weiss is clearly leaning into the pitching matchup, and the biggest beneficiary is Thomas, who gets another shot at Jesús Luzardo with a track record that jumps off the page.
In 22 at-bats against the left-hander, Thomas has four home runs, a .409 average and a 1.503 OPS. Weiss is also batting him fifth, with Matt Olson dropping to fourth.
The broader picture for Atlanta has been a bit uneven at the plate. The Braves have been one of the best teams since the All-Star break and have won the most games against winning teams in MLB, but the offense has not carried them there.
For the full season, they’ve scored the ninth most runs in baseball. Since the break, though, they’ve fallen to 17th, and over the last two weeks they rank 23rd in runs scored.
The schedule has been brutal, but the lineup still needs a jolt.
That’s a tall order against Luzardo, who is a lefty and is in the middle of what’s being called arguably the best season of his career. Atlanta’s history against him is spotty at best. Outside of Mauricio Dubón’s 1.500 OPS in six at-bats, most of the roster has had trouble, including Ozzie Albies, Olson and Austin Riley, each with more than 22 at-bats against Luzardo.
Before the lineup came out, the main question was who would DH and where Dubón would end up. A reasonable guess had Baldwin at DH, Sean Murphy at catcher, Dubón at shortstop and Thomas in left based on the pitching matchup.
Kyle Farmer was also a possibility because of his success against lefties, but that would have meant sitting the red-hot Murphy. Instead, Weiss went a different direction and put Acuña in the DH slot.
On the Phillies’ side, Grant Holmes gets a lineup with a few hitters who have seen him well, but not much beyond that. Brandon Marsh has the most experience against Holmes among the starters, with nine at-bats, though he’s hit just .555 OPS in those meetings.
Kyle Schwarber is 1-for-8 with a home run and a .904 OPS. Bryce Harper has only four at-bats against Holmes, but he’s turned them into two hits, including a homer, and a 1.964 OPS.
Trea Turner has also done damage, with a home run and a 1.158 OPS in seven at-bats. The rest of the regulars haven’t had much success.
In Other News...
Braves Need Matt Olson To Snap Out Of This At The Plate
Matt Olson looked like one of the anchors Atlanta could lean on through the first half of the 2026 season, when the power and overall production were both there in a way that fit his usual middle-of-the-order role. Since the break, though, the profile has changed in ways the Braves have to notice, with the batting average, on-base percentage and launch-angle sweet spot percentage all sliding as the season has worn on.
The encouraging part is that this does not look like a hitter simply flailing away without answers. Olsons strikeout rate has actually come down, which suggests he is putting more balls in play, but the quality of those swings and his damage against fastballs have not been the same, and his walk rate has also dipped from last season. For Atlanta, the path back is pretty clear in theory if not always in practice: cleaner swing decisions, more walks and a better handle on the pitches he usually punishes. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Ugly At Bats Put Tim Hyers Back Under Fire
The Braves offensive issues have been hard to miss for much of the season, and they showed up again in a recent game against Jesus Luzardo. Atlanta continues to run one of the highest swing and chase rates in baseball, a profile that has too often led to poor at-bats, weak contact and long stretches where the lineup looks out of sync. Since Tim Hyers took over as hitting coach in 2024, the approach has still centered heavily on the home run, with little evidence of the plate discipline needed to consistently grind through quality pitching.
Luzardo took direct advantage of that style, getting Braves hitters to expand the zone and settling into a rhythm as the night went on. For a lineup that has battled similar problems in both the regular season and postseason, the larger concern is not just one rough game but how familiar the script has become. Atlanta keeps waiting for the offense to turn, but the underlying habits are still leaving the club vulnerable whenever an opposing pitcher can stay ahead and make them chase. [Read more 🡒]
Ozzie Albies Is Forcing A Braves Future Fans Never Expected
Ozzie Albies second-half slide has made for an uneasy stretch at the keystone, even as the Braves continue to view him as one of the more recognizable faces in the organization. Since August 1, he has hit .205/.277/.320 over 34 games, a downturn that stands out for a player who has long been part of Atlantas core and whose value has usually come from steady production and team control.
Still, the bigger story may be what comes next rather than what has happened lately. Atlanta is expected to exercise Albies final contract option because it is affordable and preserves flexibility, but that same setup also keeps the door open to trade discussions before the lockout. His future beyond 2027 is no sure thing, and a player once seen as a long-term fixture may now be moving toward a far less predictable chapter. [Read more 🡒]