Marcell Ozuna said Monday night’s Home Run Derby will be a show.
Ozuna got an early start on it Friday night in San Diego, where he belted his 25th and 26th homers of the season to fuel the Atlanta Braves’ 6-1 win over the Padres. Atlanta will shoot for a series win on Saturday in San Diego.
The Braves’ designated hitter is enjoying a second straight banner season, this one sticking out even more because he’s been the most reliable bat in a lineup that’s regressed quite a bit from the one that cracked 307 homers in 2023.
Ronald Acuna Jr. (knee) is out for the year, while Matt Olson will need to get hot over the last 2 1/2 months to get halfway his 54-homer output from the previous season. Austin Riley is unlikely to get close to the 37 dingers he notched in 2023.
Ozuna is not only providing power and run production — he leads the National League with 77 RBIs — but is batting .301, sixth in the NL. All those accomplishments earned him a first shot at the Home Run Derby.
“I’m just going to have fun and compete,” he said of the event. “You’re going to have fun no matter what, even if you lose. I’ve been there before watching my teammates do it, so I just want to do it this year to see how cool it’s going to be.”
It’s been cool this year for Reynaldo Lopez (7-2, 1.71 ERA), who will get the start for Atlanta on Saturday. He’s coming off a stellar outing against the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday, when he allowed two hits over six scoreless innings with three walks and six strikeouts.
Lopez has a 2.45 ERA in two career appearances (one start) against San Diego.
Meanwhile, the Padres’ losing skid extended to five games on Friday. San Diego has scored just five runs in the last four games, and with consecutive All-Stars — Lopez and Chris Sale — starting the final two games before the break for the Braves, things don’t figure to get easier.
The Padres hope for a good outing from right-hander Dylan Cease (7-8, 4.21), who pitched well in a 9-1 loss on Sunday against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Cease gave up three runs on five hits and a walk in seven innings but fell to 2-6 in his last eight decisions.
The six-year veteran is 1-0 with a 6.00 ERA in two career starts against Atlanta.
If there was a bright spot for San Diego on Friday night, it was the return of second baseman Xander Bogaerts (shoulder) from the injured list. Bogaerts, who ironically was injured against the Braves on May 20, made his return against them with a pair of hits.
“I feel good, man,” Bogaerts said prior to Friday night’s game. “Let’s see how it goes.”
The rest of the team combined for three hits, a common theme in a skid that has followed two weeks where the Padres simply pounded the ball. San Diego averaged nearly six runs per game over a 12-4 stretch from June 19 – July 5.
This will be the second time Lopez and Cease square off this season. They first met on the day Bogaerts went down in the opener of a doubleheader in Atlanta. The Braves’ bullpen allowed four runs in the eighth inning to cost Lopez a win as the Padres prevailed 6-5.
–Field Level Media