If I just copied and posted what I wrote about the game last Friday, would anyone notice the difference? 

Another Braves-Marlins game where the Braves scored in the top of the first inning, the 1-0 lead held up for a long time, Ronald Acuña Jr. was hit by a pitch and the Braves won the opening game of the series in shutout fashion with a 5-0 victory.. 

Hopefully tonight is where the similarities end and the second game of this series doesn’t resemble the second game of last weekend’s series. 

Positives: 

  • Don’t look now, but Charlie Morton has allowed seven earned runs in his last 33 innings pitched. Six of those seven runs came on two swings of the bat with respective three-run homers from James McCann and Adam Duvall. Morton will take a 1.90 ERA over his last five starts into the break after seven shutout innings tonight. It took a while, but this is what an $18 million starting pitcher looks like. 
  • The sample size is tiny, but Orlando Arcia is 6-for-16 with five RBIs as an Atlanta Brave. For a team with an outfield offense that has been dead as a doornail outside of Acuña, Arcia has been a breath of fresh air. 
  • Obviously the ideal scenario would be Acuña just not getting hit by pitches against the Marlins, but as long as it’s going to keep happening, driving him in for important runs is the next best option. Good job by Ozzie Albies picking up a big hit to double the lead in the seventh.
  • Two hits and an RBI for Dansby Swanson tonight, including one to the opposite field. When it comes to Swanson and his road numbers this year, you take the positives where you can get them. 

Negatives: 

  • #StopHittingRonaldAcuñaJr 
  • Talking about it sounds like a broken record at this point, but it’s one of the biggest issues with the team right now. The top four in the lineup went 6-for-15; the bottom of five spots in the lineup went 4-for-22.

Former Brave Of The Day: 

Dallas Keuchel was terrific in Baltimore tonight, allowing one run in seven innings for the White Sox in their win over the Orioles at Camden Yards. 

Quote Of The Game: 

“It’s deja vu all over again…”
— Yogi Berra 

Tomorrow’s Goal: 

The Braves are going to take aim at one of the best young arms in the National League tomorrow in All Star Trevor Rogers. Try to get to him early, at least run his pitch count up and hopefully grind out a win against a tired Miami bullpen to get back to .500.