After a wild extra-innings win on Saturday to kick off the weekend series, the Braves are already looking to bag an early series victory tonight at Camden Yards.
Elder on the Bump: Battling Fatigue and Finding His Groove
Taking the mound for the Braves is Bryce Elder, and man, we need him to deliver. He had a great start to the season, but then things got a little rough, right? Turns out he was battling some fatigue, which explains a lot. His first start post-All-Star break was better, so we gotta hope that means he’s getting back on track a bit. Elder usually profiles as a back-of-the-rotation guy, and his season numbers pretty much mirror his career average, but the variance with him from game to game? Wild. Keep an eye on his cutter and sinker; he’s been throwing ’em a lot more in June and July. Could be the key.
Know Your Opponent: Brandon Young’s Sub-Par Secondaries
Across the diamond, the Orioles are sending Brandon Young, a 27-year-old righty who’s almost 28 but has barely a year of MLB time. This dude is 6’6″ and in 28 starts over 149 innings, he’s rocking a career 4.53 xFIP and a 4.43 FIP, but somehow his ERA this year is a pretty sweet 3.25. His fastball velo is a tick below average, but it plays well thanks to some nice induced vertical break from his moderately high 43-degree arm angle. That four-seamer is his money pitch. He’s mixing in a splitter, slider, sinker, and curve, but those secondary pitches? They’re sub-par. He doesn’t strike out a ton of guys, just 7.31 per nine, and walks 3.26. Honestly, he’s not an especially impressive pitcher. The play here is simple for the Braves: lay off those crummy secondary pitches and success should be theirs for the taking.
This is it, folks, Saturday, July 25, 7:05 p.m. ET at Camden Yards in Baltimore. A chance to snag an early series win! BravesVision has the TV coverage, MLB.tv for streaming, or tune into 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan. Let’s get this series locked up!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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