Typically, an awkward one-game standalone series can make for an unwanted blip on a team’s schedule — especially when it originally was an off day.
For the streaking Atlanta Braves, though, it gives them a chance to stay hot.
Making up for a postponement on June 18, the Braves will be in search of their eighth straight victory on Monday against the visiting San Francisco Giants.
Atlanta — 27 games above .500 for the first time since 2023 — is coming off consecutive sweeps of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Rockies. Each of the club’s seven straight wins have come by two runs or fewer, including a 3-2, 10-inning victory over Colorado on Sunday.
“It’s not good for my health, I’ll tell you that much,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said of his team’s close games. “Every night is the same game. But this team is battle-tested.”
The Braves are one off from their longest winning streak of the year. Weiss’ group had lost five of six before the current hot stretch.
“It’s just another lesson of how quick things can change in this game,” Weiss said. “You play virtually every day for seven or eight months, things can change quickly. We’re worlds apart from where we were a week ago. You’ve got to have the right people in the room, people who are willing to fight through that stuff.”
Bryce Elder (8-7, 3.95 ERA) will make his sixth straight home start on Monday. The 27-year-old threw six innings of three-run, eight-hit ball against the Dodgers on Tuesday, striking out five and walking none in a no-decision. The Braves won 4-3.
The right-hander is 1-1 with a 4.76 ERA in three career starts against the Giants. He faced them on June 27 and surrendered five runs and five hits across four innings. Elder struck out four and walked one in a 5-0 road loss.
San Francisco had a rare off day on Sunday before beginning a three-city, seven game road trip. The Giants are on pace for their worst season since finishing 64-98 in 2017, but first-year manager Tony Vitello’s group has enjoyed success against Atlanta, taking four of the first five meetings this season.
Right-hander Anthony Molina (1-0, 2.89) will make the third start of his major league career on Monday and do so against his former team. The 24-year-old was traded by Atlanta at the August deadline for starting pitcher Tyler Mahle.
Molina made his team debut on Tuesday, tossing 4 1/3 stellar innings in relief against the Cincinnati Reds. The right-hander allowed just one hit while striking out one and walking one in a 3-1 win.
With the Giants playing for nothing but pride, Molina will be given the chance to impress before an important offseason for the franchise.
“I think the door is open for some of the guys that we have in the organization that are teetering on, ‘Is this guy going to be a starter or not,'” Vitello said. “The opportunity is there more than ever.”
Molina faced the Braves twice as a member of the Rockies. He allowed one run in four innings across outings in 2024 and 2025.
–Field Level Media
