Reynaldo Lopez and the Braves want to win a series against the Phillies

The Atlanta Braves will try to win a three-game series against the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday afternoon at Truist Park. The Braves lost the opener 8-6 on Friday, but responded Saturday with a strong performance from Spencer Schwellenbach in a 5-1 victory. Reynaldo López will start Sunday for Atlanta, while Philadelphia will go with right-hander Michael Mercado.

Lopez will look to get back on track Sunday against the Phillies after showing signs of fatigue in recent starts. He did a great job of limiting the damage, but he faced a lot of runners on base, which led to a higher pitch count early in the game. Lopez hasn’t thrown beyond fifth base in his last three starts. He allowed two runs and tied his season high with four walks in 4 ¹⁄₃ innings in his last outing against the Giants. Lopez has allowed eight hits and issued eight walks in his last nine games. ¹⁄₃ innings, but allowed only four runs in that span.

Mercado will make his second start of the season after being forced to return to action due to injuries to Taijuan Walker and Spencer Turnbull. He pitched well in his first start of the season on July 2, limiting the Cubs to two hits and one run in five innings while throwing 78 pitches.

The Braves added five more runs Saturday and now have scored 11 in the series. They got the better of Ranger Suarez for three runs in the first inning on a single by Ozzie Albies and a three-run home run by Marcell Ozuna. Albies added a two-run home run in the fifth to round out the scoring. After going without a home run in 11 straight games, Ozuna homered in both games of the series and drove in five runs to reclaim the National League lead with 72 RBIs.

First pitch Sunday is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. ET and can be seen on Bally Sports Southeast.

Game Information

Game date/time: Sunday, July 7, 1:35 p.m. ET

Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, Georgia

TV: Bally Sports South East

Streaming: MLB.tv

Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM