LOS ANGELES – The Braves started Adam Duvall in center field Monday for the series opener against the Dodgers.
It was Duvall’s ninth game in center this season, but his first since rejoining the Braves on July 30. Duvall manned center once in his previous Braves tenure, though he didn’t start at that spot. Monday was his eighth career start in center, with all coming this season.
The Braves also had newcomer Eddie Rosario in left field, getting him into a lineup equipped to face Dodgers southpaw Julio Urias. Jorge Soler started in right field, with former Dodger Joc Pederson on the bench.
“I kind of want to get a look at it,” manager Brian Snitker said of Duvall in center. “I really like what I saw from (Eddie) Rosario last yesterday, especially against the lefties. I talked to Adam about it. I’ve seen a lot of guys a lot bigger than him playing center field this year. The way he runs, and as good an outfielder as he is, I think he’ll be do really good out there.
“So it’s kind of interesting, now all of a sudden, the outfield thing is real. We’ve been talking about getting everybody back, and I’m still not 100% sure how we’re going to navigate this.”
Braves notes:
- During the Braves’ nine-game winning streak, much was made of the quality of their opponents. They swept the lowly Nationals, Marlins and Orioles. And while the Braves are coming off a 2-3 homestand against the Yankees and Giants, they’ve fared well against potential postseason teams.
The Braves were 11-8 against National League teams in playoff position entering Monday’s opener in Los Angeles. They’re 3-3 against Milwaukee, 4-3 against Cincinnati, and 3-2 against both the Dodgers and Giants, who own the best records in the league.
- Monday’s game at Dodger Stadium was the Braves’ first road game against the NL West since Aug. 26, 2019, when they played a make-up game in Colorado. The 2020 schedule was altered due to the pandemic, with teams playing geographically designed schedules. The Braves faced the Dodgers in the NL Championship Series, but the series was played in Arlington as part of MLB’s postseason bubble.
- The Braves will again be well-acquainted with the NL West and its cities by September’s end. All their remaining road games are in the NL West. They’re in Los Angeles and Denver this week, will return for a homestand, then begin a three-city trip to San Francisco, Phoenix and San Diego on Sept. 17.
- The starting pitching matchups for the next two games of the Braves’ series against the Dodgers: Charlie Morton (12-5, 3.60) will face righty Walker Buehler (13-2, 2.02) on Tuesday, then Max Fried (11-7, 3.54) will start in his native Southern California against Max Scherzer (12-4, 2.51). It will be Scherzer’s first start against the Braves since Washington dealt him to the Dodgers before the trade deadline.
