Braves’ Spencer Schwellenbach rises to the occasion with ‘a little extra in the air’

Five observations:

1. Spencer Schwellenbach felt what everyone else felt: This game had a more serious edge. The Braves entered the day 10 games behind the Phillies in the division, and they knew they would lose the series with a loss Saturday. Before Schwellenbach threw a pitch, there was a 31-minute rain delay before the game.

Ultimately, a sellout crowd of 41,006 watched Schwellenbach face one of the best teams in baseball.

“There was a little more pressure in the air, for sure,” Schwellenbach said. “The night game, there was a little delay. But you could feel it. You could feel it in the dugout before the game. When I got on the mound, it was like, ‘Let’s go.’”

Schwellenbach held the Phillies to just one run in six innings. He struck out six batters. He allowed seven hits but, unlike other starts, he never had that inning that got away from him.

What do you think about this for the rookie?

“Pretty good, huh?” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “It was very, very impressive, right out of the gate.”

The Phillies are without three of their stars. But as the Braves discovered Friday, they’re still powerful. They can do damage.

The Braves gave Schwellenbach a three-run lead with three runs in the first inning, and he ran with it. All things considered, it was his best start of the season. He had allowed just one run in six innings against the Tigers last month, but this time was different.

This game seemed bigger.

Schwellenbach rose to the occasion.

“I think he’s going to be good for the rest of the season,” Marcell Ozuna said. “He’s got more confidence and he’s throwing a lot better than he was before.”

2. Entering the stadium Saturday, Ranger Suarez of the Phillies had a 2.27 ERA. He’s likely an All-Star. He’s pitched well against the Braves in each of the last two playoff series.

That night, Atlanta jumped on Suarez.

It all started like this in the bottom of the first: Jarred Kelenic’s leadoff double, Ozzie Albies’ run-scoring single. Three batters later, Ozuna launched a two-run shot to give the Braves a three-run lead.

Context here: Suarez had allowed three or more earned runs in just four of his 17 starts before Saturday. Atlanta gave up three in the first inning and five in five innings.

“It’s good because he’s a big guy,” Snitker said. “He changes speeds really well and can move the ball, so it was really encouraging to have a night like that without him.”

The Braves’ struggling offense really needed a game like this against a great starting pitcher. This time, Atlanta backed its starting pitcher.

“We’ve been playing him for a long time, and every year and every (series) we play the Phillies, we play that guy,” Ozuna said. “He’s good. He’s really good.”

The Braves were better on Saturday.

Credits: AP

Credits: AP

3. Before the game, Cox went to the Braves locker room. He took a photo with the team.

“You don’t realize that none of these guys had ever met him,” Snitker said. (Albies had, in fact, met him.)

It was one of Cox’s first trips to Truist Park for a game since suffering a stroke in 2019. In 2020, he was diagnosed with congestive heart failure. He remained out of the public eye for years.

Cox’s wife Pam was also in attendance. When he was displayed on the big board, Cox waved to the cheering crowd.

“I’m glad he went through it, because I hope he comes back,” Snitker said.

4. A play that might be forgotten: The Phillies put the first man on base in the second inning after the Braves took a 3-0 lead in the first. With one out, Kody Clemens hit a ball to right field, took the tight turn at first base and sprinted to second base.

Adam Duvall threw a missile to Orlando Arcia, who handed off to Clemens. Arcia held on as Clemens slid off base.

Instead of having runners on second and third base with one out, Schwellenbach had a man on third base with two outs. He escaped unscathed.

“I mean, it’s huge,” Schwellenbach said. “Getting an out on the base paths is always huge. Instead of having a second and a third, there’s only a runner on third.”

After a mistake-filled opening-game loss, the Braves made plenty of game-winning plays Saturday.

“On a team like this, those outs are valuable,” Snitker said. “And when you can get them like that, it’s huge.”

5It is difficult to attach particular importance to a match on July 7th…

But Sunday is important for Atlanta.

The Braves and Phillies will play for the series. If the Braves win, they move to within eight games of Philadelphia. If they lose, they will be 10 games behind with 74 games remaining.

“At the beginning of the season and the series, I told my teammates, ‘Every time we play the Phillies, it’s going to be a playoff game. We have to treat it like a playoff game,’” Ozuna said. “If they win, they win. If we lose, we lose. And we have to continue to do a good job and fight every at-bat, every out.”

Statistics to know

5 – The Braves’ five runs were the most in a game Schwellenbach has started. They have scored 11 runs in his first six starts.

Quotable

“It was awesome. I’m glad we won and Bobby was there to see us.” – Albies on his win over Cox

Following

In Sunday’s deciding game, Reynaldo López will pitch for the Braves against right-hander Michael Mercado and the Phillies. First pitch will be at 1:35 p.m.