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#962 San Francisco Giants (Birdsong) +115 over Atlanta Braves (Schwellenbach) 9:15 PM CT

Atlanta had a 6-0 early lead and led 10-4 in the bottom of the ninth inning yesterday before Arizona plated seven runs in a stunning comeback. That loss drops Atlanta to 27-34 on the season as it continues to be a challenging season for one of the expected NL contenders. The Atlanta bullpen used all its top options yesterday and takes four straight losses across the country to San Francisco for a late night game Friday night. Spencer Schwellenbach is one of the NL’s better starters right now as he has delivered a fine second season through 12 starts. Schwellenbach has dominant numbers in Atlanta and owns a 4.94 ERA on the road however and Atlanta is just 1-3 in his road starts. San Francisco has a massive bullpen edge in this pairing as the Braves have a 5.25 bullpen ERA with a 1.56 WHIP in the past 10 games. In contrast the Giants have a 0.88 bullpen ERA in that span. San Francisco just split four games with San Diego at home but are 19-11 at Oracle Park for the season. Only twice in the past 10 games has San Francisco pitching allowed more than three runs and Hayden Birdsong has impressed in his second MLB season as well. Birdsong has a 2.37 ERA for the season with a 9.5 K/9 and he has amazing home numbers with a 1.29 ERA in 21 innings. Birdsong has mostly pitched out of the bullpen this season but has made three starts in a row and has been able clear at least four innings in all three outings, including back-to-back starts with 88 pitches each as his endurance is nearly up to a full starting level. San Francisco only used two relievers yesterday and while Randy Rodriguez has now pitched in back-to-back games, he threw just 21 total pitches as his outing Wednesday was incredibly brief. Atlanta is only 10-20 on the road and a long trip west after a demoralizing result and another disastrous performance from closer Raisel Iglesias leaves this team in a tough spot in another difficult matchup.