Sean Murphy is back behind the plate for the Braves, and the lineup card tells you plenty about how Atlanta is handling the opener of its homestand against the Mets.
With Murphy catching and batting ninth, Drake Baldwin has slid into the DH spot, while Dominic Smith is nowhere to be found in the starting nine. That lines up with the simplest version of the case: Murphy has been the steadier defensive catcher, Baldwin has been roughly average behind the plate, and Smith’s bat has not been carrying enough weight to force the issue. The source notes Smith is sitting on a .313 wOBA and a .306 xwOBA, with a modest line against right-handers, and the Braves are choosing Murphy’s glove over that offensive tradeoff tonight.
The Mets are sending right-hander Christian Scott to the mound, and the Braves have already seen him a little bit, though not much. Most of Atlanta’s regulars have faced Scott in a couple of games during his young career.
Michael Harris II and Jim Jarvis have done the best with those tiny samples, each posting wOBA and xwOBA marks above .500. On the other end, Matt Olson, Austin Riley, and Ronald Acuña Jr. have had a tougher time, with both their wOBA and xwOBA below .250.
As a group, the Braves’ line against Scott sits at .321 wOBA and .282 xwOBA across just 49 plate appearances.
There’s also a small wrinkle in the outfield mix: Mike Yastrzemski is not starting in place of Mauricio Dubon. That stands out because, outside of one odd game when the Braves started Lane Thomas and Murphy against a righty, Yastrzemski has not sat against a right-handed starter since April 26 while on the active roster. Dubon gets the nod tonight, and the source suggests there may be something nagging Yastrzemski.
On the other side, the Mets are rolling out a lineup that looks a little unusual even by matchup-driven standards, with Jared Young batting fifth and Francisco Alvarez hitting ninth in the same arrangement.
Bryce Elder gets the ball for Atlanta, and the Mets have not seen nearly as much of him as you might expect. The two clubs have only 52 collective plate appearances against Elder.
Francisco Lindor and Brett Baty are the only Mets with double-digit trips against him; Lindor has hit him hard, putting up a .606 wOBA and .496 xwOBA, while Baty has had the opposite experience at .279 wOBA and .233 xwOBA. Carson Benge and A.J.
Ewing have also done damage in very limited looks, with both players stinging Elder in three plate appearances apiece.
Overall, the Mets’ collective numbers against Elder are loud: a .453 wOBA and .398 xwOBA. That leaves plenty of room for improvement if Elder has his mechanics working tonight.
In Other News...
Braves Face 2 Contract Calls That Could Shape Their Next Core
The Braves are already staring at a familiar kind of roster puzzle, the sort that can quietly shape a contenders future long before free agency actually arrives. With several core pieces set to hit the market after the 2026 season, the front office has to decide which players are worth betting on now, while their value is still clearer and their cost is still manageable.
Two names sit near the center of that conversation in Atlanta: Raisel Iglesias and Mauricio Dubon. Both fit the kind of practical, high-use profile that winning teams tend to keep around, and the next stretch will go a long way toward determining whether the Braves treat them as part of the next core or simply two more pieces in a crowded roster picture. There is also a harder edge to the same discussion, because not every expensive or familiar name deserves the same treatment, and the decisions on the margins could matter just as much as the headline moves. [Read more 🡒]
Austin Riley Explains What Sparked His Turnaround At The Plate
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What makes the stretch more interesting is the mindset behind it. Riley has talked about the value of focusing on what he can do now instead of trying to relive past production, a shift that can be just as important as any mechanical tweak. In a season where every small offensive spark matters, the Braves have reason to keep watching whether this version of Riley can keep building on the gains he has found. [Read more 🡒]
Braves May Need A Different Outfield Answer Than Mike Yastrzemski
The Braves went into the Mike Yastrzemski addition expecting a clean platoon fit, but Jurickson Profars suspension quickly pushed him into a more regular outfield role. Since then, the mix has been less settled than the club probably hoped, with Yastrzemski and Dom Smith both scuffling enough to keep the front office and coaching staff looking at other ways to stabilize the spot.
One name that keeps coming up is Patrick Clohisy, whose rise through Double-A and Triple-A has been built on more than just bat-to-ball skill. He has shown the kind of defense and base-running pop that could make him useful even before the hitting fully translates, and the Braves need for more speed on the bases only adds to the appeal of giving him a look sooner rather than later. [Read more 🡒]