The Atlanta Braves are on the brink of franchise history on Sunday when Shelby Miller was one out away from pitching a no-hitter against the Miami Marlins. However, fate was not on his side and Miller lost it, but still got the 6-0 win. The performance capped off a three-game sweep over the Marlins which was a nice confidence booster for the Braves. Now the team will put up Mike Foltynewicz in hopes that he can keep the momentum moving.
Since being brought up from Triple-A Grinnett, Folynewicz, nicknamed Folty, has been decent, but not great. He is 2-0 with a 4.24 ERA and is coming off his best start of the season after giving up just three runs and six hits in just over six innings of play against the Cincinnati Reds. It was his longest outing so far and the Braves are hopeful he improves now that Mike Minor has been ruled out for the year.
The Braves have been getting production from Triple-A callus. Todd Cunningham arrived on Friday and promptly went 8 for 12 with four runs in the sweep over the Marlins. That certainly helped as Freddie Freeman went just 3 for 14 despite having a .388 batting average. The Braves showed some offensive life against the Marlins and need to keep that moving against the Rays.
Tampa Bay will send Erasmo Ramirez to the mound as he is 1-1 with a 6.66 ERA on the season. Nathan Karns was supposed to start on Tuesday, but the Rays opted to give him an extra day of rest instead. Ramirez has three starts to his name this season. He gave up just one hit in five scoreless innings against the New York Yankees. His lone time of play against the Braves, he allowed five runs and eight hits in three innings.
The Rays are coming off one of their best offensive performances after putting up 19 hits in an 11-3 win. Evan Longoria and James Loney put up three RBIs a piece while Bobby Wilson had three runs. The Rays have the talent to put up plenty of offensive on the Braves if pitching becomes an issue.
