Preview: Soroka takes the rubber for the Braves in series opener with Brewers

The Atlanta Braves look to take down red-hot Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday night as both teams begin a three-game set between two first-place teams.

Chicago White Sox v Atlanta Braves
Chicago White Sox v Atlanta Braves | Matthew Grimes Jr./Atlanta Braves/GettyImages

The Atlanta Braves were able to salvage their final game of a series with the Diamondbacks. This snapped a rare 4-game losing streak for the Braves. They'll hope to continue winning as they prepare to face the Milwaukee Brewers.

It's always good to get a win on a "getaway day" to try and set the tone for a road trip. Atlanta came out swinging against the White Sox but then scuffled for 4 straight games. They currently sit at 2-4 since the All-Star break and are looking to get back to winning multiple series in a row.

How well do the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers match up?

Meanwhile, the Milwaukee Brewers have a 5-1 record since the break having swept the Reds and taking 2 out of 3 games against the Phillies. The Brewers currently lead the NL Central with a 54-43 record. Their offense isn't a very potent one as they sit 26th in all of baseball when it comes to batting average with a .231 team average.

The Braves feature the best offense in the National League with a .269 team average and a .832 OPS which is the best in baseball. Atlanta has the second-best team ERA in the NL with a 3.79 collectively whereas the Brewers are fourth-best with a 3.94 team ERA. So, both teams match up pretty well when it comes to pitching but it's hard not to favor Atlanta in the offense department.

Pitching Matchup for Game One

Michael Soroka vs. Freddy Peralta

Michael Soroka will make his fifth start of the season for the Braves. He most recently appeared in relief against the White Sox on July 16th because of the gap between his last start which was on July 5th in Cleveland.

Soroka pitched 3 innings and allowed 2 runs on 3 hits including no walks and 3 strikeouts. While he did allow a home run, which has been a problem for him so far, he didn't walk anyone. That's very important because that limits the opportunity for muli-run homers.

His ERA currently sits a 5.40 through 23.1 innings pitched with 9 walks and 19 strikeouts. While it's been a tough stretch for Soroka, it's been good to see that he has remained healthy and the Achilles injury hasn't seemed to cause any more issues for him as he tries to return to form.

He will be opposed by Brewers starter Freddy Peralta who has a 4.41 ERA through 98 innings with 40 walks and 113 homers. He completed 6 innings of one hit, shutout ball against the Reds last time out, and walked 2 batters while striking out 6 of them. The Brewers only allowed one hit all game and a missed strike three call in the 4th inning of that game may have cost the team a chance at a no-hitter.

Peralta will have to face a potent Braves offense that features a red-hot Austin Riley, NL home run leader, Matt Olson, and MVP front-runner, Ronald Acuna Jr. He does have a career ERA of 3.09 when facing Atlanta so he clearly feels comfortable pitching against them. He also has a 3.88 ERA when pitching at home in 2023.

It should be a good matchup but the Braves offense certainly has a leg up on the competition but don't count out a team that features Christian Yelich, who is on a hot streak at the moment. He is batting .310 with 3 home runs and 8 runs batted in through his last 7 games. Former Brave William Contreras is also on the team and we all know how well he can hit at any moment.

Things kick off at 8:10 PM EST from American Family Field in Milwaukee.

How to watch Braves at Brewers

Where and when: American Family Field in Milwaukee, WI at 8:10 PM EST

Watch: Bally Sports Southeast

Listen: 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan