Braves blast three into the seats as Fish fall under .500

[Louis Addeo-Weiss]

During Chris Paddack's time in the major leagues, the lows have largely outweighed the highs. Since an impressive rookie campaign with the San Diego Padres in 2019, his ERA has been north of 5.00.

The club he faced on Wednesday night, the Atlanta Braves, has repeatedly been a safe haven through the years. In four career appearances against them, Paddack's 2.14 ERA ranks second-lowest among teams he has encountered a minimum of three times. Paddack owns a 1.32 ERA in three starts against the Cardinals.

In the first inning Wednesday night, Jackie Robinson Day around the sport, Paddack's luck against Atlanta seemed like it would persist, setting down the top of the order 1-2-3, including a pair of strikeouts. What followed would be a 28-pitch second inning that prevented Paddack from giving the Marlins the length they needed the night after Eury Pérez only gave the club four innings. 

After getting Austin Riley to fly out, Ozzie Albies continued his run of torching Miami pitching, blasting a solo home run to get the scoring going for Atlanta. Albies' home run marked his 22nd career blast against the Marlins, tying him with Marcell Ozuna for the sixth most among active players. 

Atlanta would tack on another run later in the inning when Mauricio Dubón lined a single to left on a hanging, full-count breaking ball that caught too much of the plate.

Paddack would, however, settle back into his accustomed groove against Atlanta, firing 1-2-3 frames in the third and fourth. Were it not for a single by another notorious Marlin killer, Ronald Acuña Jr., Paddack would have completed at least five innings for the second consecutive outing. At 92 pitches, Clayton McCullough signaled for another lefty, John King, to finish the frame.

Paddack's final line: 4.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 K.

After allowing eight runs in his season debut on March 30, Paddack has allowed just five runs (four earned) over his last 15 1/3 innings spread across three appearances. You'd have to go back to the six-start span between May 9-June 7, 2025, the last time Paddack allowed two or fewer runs in at least three consecutive outings.

Miami's bats would lie dormant for the first two-thirds of the game, as Bryce Elder fired 5 ⅔ scoreless innings to lower his season ERA to 0.77.

The previously mentioned King would falter the following inning, though, when Austin Riley blasted his 16th career home run against Miami. 

Following a Drake Baldwin RBI single in the latter half of the seventh, Matt Olson, playing in his 801st consecutive game, continued a torrid start to the season, sending the first offering from Andrew Nardi over the right field wall to increase the Atlanta lead to six.

Showcasing the resiliency they showed in 2025, Miami would begin to claw back, thanks in large part to Liam Hicks, who hit his team-leading fourth home run of the season. In 18 games to begin the season, Hicks owns a 145 wRC+. 

Heriberto Hernández, whose misplayed fly ball led to the Olson homer, plated the Marlins third run when he grounded into a fielder's choice. 

The Marlins fell to Atlanta, 6-3. In 78 lifetime games at Truist Park, the Marlins are a dismal 23-55. The Braves have yet to lose a series through the first three weeks of the 2026 season.

Despite the recent skid, manager Clayton McCullough remained steadfast in his belief in his group of guys.

"We really like the team we have here, and we have a lot of games to play...so there's a lot to like right now."

 

Looking Ahead

Thursday will represent the Marlins' first off-day since April 2, concluding a span of 13 games in 13 days. When they resume play on Friday, they will face off against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Janson Junk (0-2, 4.32 ERA) will toe the rubber against his former club. 

First pitch from loanDepot park is slated 7:10 EST.

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