Tyler Mahle takes the mound as Braves go for sweep of Rockies

There’s whiplash-inducing, and then there’s whatever the Braves have done in August. The month started with five wins in a row, the bulk of an eight-game winning streak. Then there was a stretch where the Braves won just one of five series, including suffering a sweep at the hands of the Twins. But, they’re reeling off another winning streak as August draws to a close, having won six in a row. They swept the Dodgers at home (first time sweeping the Dodgers since 2013!) and can pull off another sweep if they win today. Another odd thing: the Braves haven’t had a win by a differential of three or more runs since August 12; their last seven wins have all been either one-run or two-run affairs in the end.

To help keep the winning streak going, the Braves will rely on Trade Deadline pickup Tyler Mahle. The journeyman right-hander has a 109/101/94 line (ERA-/FIP-/xFIP-) for the season as a whole. As a Brave, that line has been a much healthier 37/73/80, though it’s only been four starts. The Braves have split those four games, but not for any real fault of Mahle’s, who’s been great in three of them, only struggling against the Twins. The Braves have reworked Mahle’s arsenal a bit, having him throw more splitters and less of his other non-four seam offerings; the result has been a bunch more whiffs, including in the zone.

This will be Mahle’s third outing against the Rockies this season, as he faced them in back-to-back starts in July. He acquitted himself pretty well (though he lasted only 4 1/3 at Coors Field) with a combined 9/3 K/BB ratio in 11 1/3 innings across those two starts.

Starting opposite Mahle for Colorado will be Mason Adams, a 26-year-old right-hander acquired from the White Sox in the Brenton Doyle trade. Adams was a 2022 senior sign that has nonetheless progressed towards the majors on the back of an extreme pitchability profile that’s given him a fair bit of minor league success amid a progression of serious injuries, including Tommy John Surgery last spring. He made his MLB debut last week against the Nationals, and put together a 5/3 K/BB ratio in four frames, with Daylen Lile tagging him for a homer. Adams threw a diversified four-pitch mix (four-seamer, sinker, sweeper, curve) in that start; the Braves should be prepared for a fairly straightforward fastballs-in-zone, breakers-out-of-it profile.

Game Date/Time: Sunday, August 30, 1:35 p.m. EDT

Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, GA

TV/Streaming: BravesVision

Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan, Los Bravos