Arizona Diamondbacks at Atlanta Braves

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
ARI	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	10	0
ATL	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0

Pfaadt (6-1, 3.18 ERA) got the ball for Arizona in the series opener, squaring off with Sale (12-7, 2.18 ERA) at 7:15 PM ET. Sale had allowed 3 runs in his last turn against the Yankees, while Pfaadt had been nails in his own last outing — 7 scoreless innings against the Dodgers with just 2 hits allowed. Friday, he kept that going against a Braves lineup that hadn't seen him all season.

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FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Diamondbacks(64-58)

LLWWL

2

+1.5-115+186o7.5-120

Braves(73-48)

WWLWL

0

-1.5+113-186u7.5+120

Best BetBraves -187

Postgame

This one didn't come close. Pfaadt did exactly what his recent form threatened, holding Atlanta to 3 hits over the whole game, and the bear case — his hot streak, a shorthanded Atlanta pen — is what decided it. Sale's strikeouts never mattered because the Braves never got the offense rolling; Arizona won outright, 2-0.

Pregame

Sale gives Atlanta the best arm on the mound tonight, and at 2.20 ERA he's been the steadiest thing about a Braves staff that's lost two starters for the year. The short price reflects a real talent gap, even after his last outing ended in a loss. Arizona's counterpunch is a hot Pfaadt, but the Diamondbacks are doing it with a rotation missing three key names behind him.

Atlanta's pitching depth away from Sale isn't what it was earlier this year. Reynaldo Lopez and Robert Suarez are both still working back from injury, and Spencer Schwellenbach and Spencer Strider remain on the 60-day list, so every out Sale could squeeze out mattered more than usual. Books still made the Braves heavy home favorites, and sharp money piled onto the Over before first pitch.

Brandon Pfaadt

(7-1)·3.39 ERA

Aug 8 vs Dodgers

ND

7.0IP

0ER

2K

2BB

93P

08/14 Lineup

Chris Sale

(12-9)·2.20 ERA

Aug 8 @ Yankees

L

6.0IP

3ER

8K

2BB

103P

08/14 Lineup

None of that showed up on the scoreboard. Pfaadt needed only 2 hits allowed to keep Atlanta off the board completely, and by the time the Braves' pen had to close out a scoreless line of its own, Arizona had already banked the only runs of the night.

Arizona Diamondbacks

(64-58)

Aug 12Lvs Rockies4-6

Aug 12Lvs Rockies2-3

Aug 11Wvs Rockies9-0

Aug 9Wvs Dodgers4-2

Aug 9Lvs Dodgers1-2

Atlanta Braves

(73-48)

Aug 12Wvs Mets6-3

Aug 11Wvs Mets4-0

Aug 10Lvs Mets5-8

Aug 9W@ Yankees2-1

Aug 8L@ Yankees4-5

The form card tells the story coming in: Arizona had lost 2 straight and gone 2-3 over its last 5, while Atlanta had won 2 straight and sat atop the NL East. On paper, Friday looked like the Braves handling business against a team scuffling on the road. It didn't play out that way at all.

Arizona Diamondbacks

(14)

• Day-To-DayKetel Marte (2B) — Marte went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the Rockies.08/15
• 10-Day-ILJordan Lawlar (LF) — Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said Wednesday that Lawlar (hamstring) could return from the 10-day injured list during their upcoming road trip that begins Friday in Atlanta, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.08/13
• 10-Day-ILLourdes Gurriel Jr. (LF) — Gurriel (adductor) took five at-bats in a bridge league game Saturday at the Diamondbacks' extended spring training facility, MLB.com reports.08/10
• 10-Day-ILTommy Troy (LF) — Troy (shoulder) is likely to participate in extended spring training games this week, Jack Sommers of SI.com reports.08/04
• 15-Day-ILRyan Thompson (RP) — Thompson (back) began a throwing program Monday, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.08/13
• 15-Day-ILDrey Jameson (RP) — Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said Sunday that Jameson (hip) is expected to begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Reno during the upcoming week, Alex D'Agostino of SI.com reports.08/10
• 60-Day-ILBlake Walston (SP) — Walston (elbow) struck out two and allowed one hit in a scoreless inning during a rehab appearance Wednesday with Triple-A Reno.08/13
• 60-Day-ILJustin Martinez (RP) — Martinez (elbow) struck out two and over a perfect inning in a rehab appearance for Triple-A Reno on Tuesday.08/13
• 60-Day-ILZac Gallen (SP) — Gallen (elbow) completed a 33-pitch bullpen session in Arizona on Tuesday, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.08/11
• 60-Day-ILCorbin Burnes (SP) — Burnes (elbow/teres major) threw a 30-pitch bullpen session in Arizona on Tuesday, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.08/11
• 60-Day-ILRyne Nelson (SP) — Nelson (elbow) is expected to begin a bullpen progression within the next 7-to-10 days, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.08/10
• 60-Day-ILA.J. Puk (RP) — Manager Torey Lovullo said Friday that Puk (elbow/shoulder) will remain shut down for the remainder of the season, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.08/07
• 60-Day-ILAndrew Saalfrank (RP) — Saalfrank (shoulder) has begun a throwing program, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports.07/18
• 60-Day-ILCristian Mena (RP) — Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo told reporters Monday that Mena underwent surgery on his right shoulder and will be sidelined for the rest of the season, Jack Sommers of SI.com reports.06/01

Atlanta Braves

(7)

• 15-Day-ILReynaldo Lopez (RP) — Atlanta manager Walt Weiss said that Lopez (knee) completed a bullpen session Tuesday, Jesus Cano of The Athletic reports.08/14
• 15-Day-ILRobert Suarez (RP) — Suarez (elbow) will advance his throwing progression on flat ground Thursday, Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal reports.08/12
• suspensionJurickson Profar (LF) — Profar will miss the full 2026 season after the appeal of his 162-game PED suspension was denied Thursday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.05/08
• 60-Day-ILSpencer Schwellenbach (SP) — Schwellenbach (elbow) is still not feeling 100 percent and will have his throwing progression slowed, Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal reports.08/12
• 60-Day-ILSpencer Strider (SP) — Atlanta manager Walt Weiss said Monday that Strider (elbow) will begin a throwing progression this week, Chad Bishop of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.08/10
• 60-Day-ILJoe Jimenez (RP) — Atlanta manager Walt Weiss revealed Wednesday that Jimenez underwent another surgery on his left knee 3-to-4 weeks ago, Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal reports.05/13
• 60-Day-ILJoey Wentz (RP) — Atlanta placed Wentz (knee) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08

Ketel Marte's bat matters even on a day-to-day tag — he'd gone deep just days earlier in a loss to the Rockies — and Jordan Lawlar was in play to rejoin the D-backs on this very road trip after a hamstring stint, giving Arizona reinforcements right as Atlanta's pitching depth was already stretched thin by Lopez and Suarez both nursing injuries. That edge in the margins showed up by the 9th.

Tim Tawa's 9th-inning homer put a bow on it, backing up Pfaadt's line and handing Arizona the series opener despite entering as sizable underdogs on both the moneyline and the run line. The Braves finish it with 3 hits and a shutout at home, in a game the numbers said belonged to them.