Mauricio

Dubón

It’s the first start of the series for Smith, who has appeared as a pinch-hitter and struck out in each of the first two games. Mike Yastrzemski will also return to the starting lineup for Game 3 after sitting in Game 2. Sean Murphy and Ha-Seong Kim will open the game on the bench for the Braves. Here’s the full lineup that the Braves will deploy in a must-win game against Phillies’ right-hander Aaron Nola: Drake Baldwin (C), Ronald Acuña Jr. (RF), Matt Olson (1B), Michael Harris II (CF), Mauricio Dubon (SS), Mike Yastrzemski (LF) Austin Riley (3B), Ozzie Albies (2B) and Dominic Smith (DH)

Dubón won it for the Braves with a dribbler in the 10th inning that was just far enough away from Reds reliever Luis Mey to plate the winning run from third. That was Atlanta’s first lead in the whole game and Dubón’s fine regular season is coming to a close with a .275 batting average, .712 OPS, 11 home runs, and nine stolen bases while playing great defense at shortstop.

Riley has been limping to the finish line of the regular season, slashing just .203/.266/.339 with two homers, eight RBI and a 22/4 K/BB ratio over 64 plate appearances since the calendar flipped to September. Hopefully a day off to reset is what he needs to get back on track. Mauricio Dubon will cover third base in his absence and will bat fifth for the Braves on Sunday.

Kim has now started five of the last six games at shortstop, even mixing in against right-handers too. He is 4-for-12 with one run and one RBI over the previous four starts, but three of those hits came in one game against the Nationals. Mauricio Dubon has been playing in the outfield more often over that stretch.

A tooth and nail game from the jump with huge ramifications in the fight for the National League East crown, Dubón helped the Braves put it away late. His eighth inning home run stretched their lead from one run to three and all but ended this contest. As an unlikely everyday player in Atlanta, Dubón tied his career-high with 133 games played in this one and has been productive enough with 10 home runs, seven stolen bases, and a .268 batting average while playing excellent defense at shortstop.

This means Brewer Hicklen will remain with the team after being the 27th man for the doubleheader. Jarvis had been starting at shortstop for the Braves for much of the summer, but his playing time had lessened in recent weeks, and the production simply hasn’t been there. Mauricio Dubon will take over as the primary shortstop in Atlanta for the remainder of the season.

Jarvis has seemingly taken over as Atlanta’s primary shortstop, even with Ha-Seong Kim back from the injured list, starting three of their last five games with Kim and Mauricio Dubón splitting the other two. The unheralded 25-year-old is hitting just .239/.287/.352 with one homer and 10 RBI across 97 plate appearances. He’ll need a strong finish to have any chance of being in the mix as an everyday option entering next season, lockout or not. Atlanta is going to be linked to a ton of shortstops in offseason trade rumors with Jarvis seemingly a stronger fit as a multi-position role player moving forward.

The 25-year-old outfielder will get a breather with tough left-hander Max Fried toeing the slab for the Yankees. Mauricio Dubon will start in his place in center field and will bat fifth for the Braves on Friday evening in New York.

Dubón singled in the second inning but was cut down trying to stretch it into a double. He then led off the fourth inning with a walk and pilfered second base before being left stranded there. The versatile 32-year-old also singled and scored in the sixth inning before adding on an RBI single of his own in the seventh. He finished his night with a run-scoring double off of Javier Sanoja in the eighth that capped off the scoring for the Braves. With his four-hit night, he’s now slashing .269/.318/.404 with 10 homers, 58 RBI and six swipes on the season.

There haven’t been any indications that Albies is dealing with any sort of injury, so it looks to be just a breather for the 29-year-old infielder. Mauricio Dubon will cover second base in his absence and will bat fifth against Marlins’ righty Janson Junk.