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Marlins vs. Braves: Start time, how to watch and game thread—May 28, 2022

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Miami Marlins Pitcher Sandy Alcantara (22) stares down a batter during the Saturday twilight MLB game between the Atlanta Braves and the Miami Marlins
Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Sandy Alcantara and Tucker Davidson will start Saturday’s Marlins vs. Braves game at Truist Park. Full lineups and game notes in here.

Welcome to Saturday’s Marlins (18-25, +10 RD) vs. Braves (22-24, -11 RD) game thread. I’d say this is a must-win game for Miami, wouldn’t you?

Our free Marlins prop bets contest has returned…with a few tweaks.

Use this Fish Picks link prior to every Marlins series to submit your predictions. I have divided the Marlins schedule into nine separate “innings” and will be awarding a BreakingT t-shirt to each inning’s points leader. The third inning runs from May 20 through June 9.

Marlins Game Notes

Marlins Starting Lineup

  1. CF Jon Berti (173 wRC+ this season, career 102 wRC+)
  2. 1B Garrett Cooper (114, 118)
  3. LF Jorge Soler (108, 111)
  4. DH Jesús Aguilar (109, 113)
  5. SS Miguel Rojas (60, 86)
  6. 3B Joey Wendle (138, 105)
  7. C Jacob Stallings (71, 86)
  8. RF Bryan De La Cruz (118, 116)
  9. 2B Willians Astudillo (-100, 86)

RHP Sandy Alcantara

Alcantara’s 2022 pitch distribution and Statcast percentile rankings
Baseball Savant
Alcantara’s 2022 pitch distribution and Statcast percentile rankings

Lineup Changes from Previous Game: De La Cruz in, Jesús Sánchez out; Aguilar moves up from 5 to 4, Wendle moves down from 4 to 6, Rojas moves up from 9 to 5; Cooper and Aguilar swap 1B/DH

Additional Notes: Brian Anderson was scratched due to a lower back issue…Early in the season, Aguilar had a worrisome lack of power. This month, his offensive profile is completely flipped, racking up lots of extra bases but showing no selectivity. He’s been swinging at nearly half of all out-of-zone pitches…The Marlins have not recorded any saves in May. This would be the first, full-length saveless month in franchise history if they don’t pick one up over the next four games. Who will be on the mound if a save opportunity presents itself? Your guess is as good as mine.

Braves Starting Lineup

  1. DH Ronald Acuña Jr. (144 wRC+ this season, career 140 wRC+)
  2. SS Dansby Swanson (117, 90)
  3. LF Marcell Ozuna (85, 113)
  4. 3B Austin Riley (119, 115)
  5. 1B Matt Olson (130, 132)
  6. 2B Ozzie Albies (91, 106)
  7. C William Contreras (204, 114)
  8. RF Adam Duvall (56, 95)
  9. CF Michael Harris (N/A, N/A)

LHP Tucker Davidson

Pregame Roster Moves: Michael Harris selected from Double-A Mississippi, Travis Demeritte optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett

Notes: Davidson has pitched poorly (5.63 ERA, 5.16 FIP) in 32 career MLB innings spread across the last few seasons. This is his first time facing the Marlins…The highly regarded Harris is making his major league debut. He should tighten up Atlanta’s outfield defense immediately…Albies (27 plate appearances) and Acuña (23 PA) have the most head-to-head history with Alcantara among active Braves players. Nobody on their roster has homered against Alcantara in their careers—Eddie Rosario did once, but he’s on the injured list…Contreras was recalled from Triple-A on April 28 and leads the majors with a .804 slugging percentage since then (min. 50 PA)…Former Marlins prospect Dylan Lee is back with the big league team. Good chance he pitches in relief at some point during this series.

How to Watch/Listen/Follow

First pitch is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. ET. Watch on Bally Sports Florida—Paul Severino and J.P. Arencibia—or listen to the radio broadcast on Fox Sports 940 Miami (Kyle Sielaff and Rod Allen). Out-of-market viewers can stream the game on MLB.TV.

Kevin Barral will handle the game recap article.

All four Marlins full-season minor league affiliates are also in action. Follow @FishProspects for notes and highlights.

DraftKings Odds