Lineup, how to watch red-hot Atlanta's series opener with the red-hot Cincinnati Reds

It's only the fifth time in the last 122 years that two teams with 8+ game win streaks are playing each other

This is going to be a GREAT matchup. 

The 48-26 Atlanta Braves are one of the hottest teams in baseball, winners of eight straight games and seventeen of their last nineteen. They're winning games in every conceivable fashion, whether it's bludgeoning the Colorado Rockies for forty runs in a four game series sweep or dominant pitching keeping Philadelphia off the board until extras on Thursday, where Atlanta got a big inning to walk away with the series sweep. 

Buuut, Cincinnati isn't a pushover right now. They've won eleven straight games, pushing them to a 40-35 record and a 1.5 game lead in the NL Central. Fueled by recent call-ups SS Matt McLain and baseball's #1 prospect, SS/3B Elly De La Cruz, as well as the return of 1B Joey Votto from injury, the Reds are scorching hot right now. 

In fact, this matchup of two teams with eight-plus game active winning streaks is only the fifth time that's happened in Major League Baseball, dating back one hundred and twenty-two years.  

Unstoppable force, meet immovable object. Something's got to give tonight. 

Lineup for the Atlanta Braves on Friday, June 23rd

Here's how the Braves will line up for the contest:

Game 1 in Cincy!#ForTheA pic.twitter.com/XHZ8KdLcJP

— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) June 23, 2023

Little bit of a lineup change here for the series, as Matt Olson moves up to the cleanup spot and Marcell Ozuna drops to fifth. Travis d'Arnaud gets his fourth consecutive start for Sean Murphy, out with "hamstring irritation", while Eddie Rosario bats 7th and plays left field. 

Pitching Matchup for the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds on Friday, June 23rd

The Atlanta Braves are sending top prospect AJ Smith-Shawver to the mound. 1-0 with a 2.03 ERA on the season, Smith-Shawver has pitched thirteen and a third innings across three appearances (two starts) with eleven strikeouts to four walks. He's (obviously) never faced Cincinnati, and it's not believed that anyone on their roster has a plate appearance against him in the minors.

Starting for Cincinnati is RHP Luke Weaver. 1-2 with a 6.47 ERA, Weaver has made eleven starts for the Reds, with fifty strikeouts to seventeen walks in his fifty-seven innings pitched. He's previously pitched for St. Louis, Arizona, and the Royals, and several Braves hitters have faced him over his eight-year career. The trio of Ronald Acuña Jr (1 HR, 2 RBIs), Ozzie Albies (1HR, 4 RBIs) and Austin Riley (2 HRs, 4 RBIs) have all taken him deep, with Ronald batting .364 and Ozzie batting .333 in their double-digit at-bats against him. 

How to Watch the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds on Friday, June 23rd

Tonight's first pitch from Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati is set for 6:40 PM ET. The game broadcast, with Voice of the Braves Brandon Gaudin, is available inside Braves Country on Bally Sports Southeast and is available on MLB.TV outside of the broadcast area. The radio call, with Ben Ingram, is available locally on 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan or outside the Atlanta market on the Atlanta Braves Radio Network or MLB.com.

---

Check out Braves Today on Socials!
Follow Braves Today on Twitter!
Like Braves Today on Facebook!
Check out the homepage for more Atlanta Braves News!
Subscribe to Braves Today on YouTube!
Get Exclusive Braves Merchandise from FOCO