Charlie Morton Makes Season Debut as Atlanta Braves Fall 4-0
By Matt Melton
After dropping the season opener in Philadelphia on Thursday afternoon, the Atlanta Braves returned to the field on Saturday afternoon for Game 2 of the Opening Series against the Phillies.
The Atlanta Braves sent Charlie Morton to the mound to make his season debut after signing the veteran right-hander to a one-year $15 million deal in the offseason.
While Morton cruised through the first four innings, he ran into some trouble in the bottom of the 5th. While some of the Phillies hits you could argue were a bit “lucky,” Philadelphia put the ball in play, and when you put the ball in play, good things tend to happen. Those good things did happen as the Phillies won the game 4-0.
Meanwhile, this game was all about the excellent and downright dominant performance from Phillies starter Zack Wheeler. Wheeler went 7 innings in his season debut while only allowing 1 hit and striking out 10.
It wasn’t just pitching that Wheeler excelled in on Saturday either as the 30 year old starting pitcher drove in two of the Phillies four runs while going 2-3 at the plate. Phillies catcher JT Realmuto also went 2-4 at the plate while Rhys Hoskins drove in the other two Philadelphia runs.
Phillies pitching was the deciding factor in this game.
Phillies pitching dominated this game as the Braves were held to only one hit, a Travis d’Arnaud 2nd Inning single. Plain and simple, it’s hard to win when not only you only have 1 hit, but the last 23 batters are retired in a row.
While there weren’t many bright spots for the Braves in this game, there were a few to take away from this.
Morton looked good during his first four innings while pounding the strike zone, and the bullpen looked good aside from one run charged to Sean Newcomb.
Yes, the Atlanta Braves offense doesn’t look great right now, but remember, it’s only the first two games of a long season. Remember 2019 when the Atlanta Braves were swept in Philadelphia to start the season? The Braves won the division.
Looking ahead, I’d expect a different Atlanta Braves team to show up tomorrow, especially offensively.
Next. Five Predictions for 2021 Atlanta Braves Season. dark
The Braves will return to the field tomorrow as Atlanta and Philadelphia will square off in the series finale at 1:05 pm ET as Ian Anderson will make his season debut against Phillies starter Zach Eflin.