Braves Report: Opening day reflections

The pitching matchup is another banger, with Reynaldo López and the Padres’ Dylan Cease.

Third of all: It’s Friday, which is always awesome. But it’s especially awesome here at the Braves Report because friend and beat reporter Justin Toscano joins the party.

You’ll want to read all the way to the end for a sneak peek at some of this season’s bobblehead giveaways — but in the meantime, take it away, Justin!

BASEBALL CHRISTMAS

Credit: Gregory Bull/AP

Credit: Gregory Bull/AP

Every Friday, Braves Report checks in with AJC beat reporter Justin Toscano. Here’s this week’s dispatch!

SAN DIEGO — Baseball is defined by its daily nature. The grind, while fun, can become monotonous — which is why those who succeed in this game are amazing.

Opening day is special, though. It feels different.

The most prevalent scene is when the teams — including coaches and staff members — stand on the line for the national anthem, with the big American flag in center field.

“That’s one of those moments that gives you chills,” Michael Harris II said Thursday morning. “Standing on the line, opening day, national anthem — pretty sure there’s going to be a flyover. Yeah, those moments always give you chills, and I guess it never gets old.”

Indeed, there was a flyover at Petco Park before Thursday’s game. Helicopters rumbled over the ballpark after the national anthem.

Everyone is excited on opening day.

“I’ve heard (when) you stop having butterflies on opening day, then that’s when you should hang it up,” Matt Olson said. “There’s always going to be a little excitement, no matter how many times you do it. Back to some meaningful baseball games.”

Opening day gives you chills, right?

“Absolutely,” Pierce Johnson said. “I mean, how can you not? With the flyovers, with the roar of the fans, it’s just such a fun opportunity that — you don’t know how many you’re ever gonna get, right? Opening day is one of those things where it’s truly a blessing to be a part of a team and start the new year, so anything’s possible. It’s just a truly humbling moment and one that you like to soak in every year.”

Manager Brian Snitker, who has spent most of his life in professional baseball, still looks at this day — a baseball holiday — fondly.

“It’s always good,” Snitker said. “It’s an exciting time in baseball, opening day. You get through a long spring training — which actually went pretty fast. And I know the guys are ready to go. They’re spring training’ed out, and we’re ready to get the thing started and see where we’re at.”

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

The Braves lost 7-4 to the Padres. Hector Neris fell apart in the seventh inning. Atlanta missed a few scoring opportunities. The Padres robbed two would-be home runs.

Put all that aside for a second, and let’s focus on how fun opening day can be.

For the Braves, Thursday included a neat layer as six players experienced opening day for the first time: Daysbel Hernández, Grant Holmes, Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver, Chadwick Tromp and Drake Baldwin. It was Baldwin’s MLB debut.

Their teammates were pumped for them.

“Oh, it’s super special,” Johnson said. “I’ll never forget my first opening day. And I told a couple of them this: It’s just one of those things where you just soak it up. It’s just such a unique experience with the flyover, with the roar of the fans. It’s a memory that they’re never gonna forget, and I just hope they cherish this moment. Because all these guys are going to have multiple of them, and I have no doubt about that, but first one is really special.”

“It’s one of those really cool experiences, being a little bit more on the veteran side now, to be able to live through those guys’ eyes a little bit and see the excitement,” Olson said. “It’s a good little reminder about how special this moment is. You do it a lot, you can take it for granted sometimes.”

And their manager loves telling guys on the fringe that they made the team — because he always has to be the one to deliver the bad news to people too.

“Every manager looks forward to that because you always have so many hard conversations,” Snitker said. “When you can have one like that, you really cherish it.”

The game didn’t go the way the Braves wanted, but no doubt opening day is a special event in the sports world.

EXTRA INNINGS

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Back at his former home, Jurickson Profar received a loud ovation before leading off the game. The fans here clearly love Profar for what he did for their team, including his All-Star 2024 campaign.

Profar then grounded a single to right field for the Braves’ first hit of 2025.

Baldwin had a nice debut. He reached base for the first time in his career when he drew a walk in the third inning. Later in the game, he almost homered — or had an extra-base hit, at least — but San Diego’s Jackson Merrill robbed him at the center-field wall.

The weekend schedule: The Braves are on Fox on Saturday (7:15 p.m.) and ESPN on Sunday (7 p.m.). Those are nationally televised, so you’ll find them on those channels.

The expected pitching matchups:

Also of note: Spencer Strider will get a rehab start Saturday with Triple-A Gwinnett. The game’s in Charlotte, though.

LOOKING GOOD

One quick addition from Tyler: I stopped by media day at Truist Park this morning. Lots of fun stuff to report — which I’ll do all next week as we approach the home opener.

But wanted to go ahead and share a first look at some soon-to-be-distributed bobbleheads I encountered in the wild:

Credit: Tyler Estep/AJC

Credit: Tyler Estep/AJC

Credit: Tyler Estep/AJC

Credit: Tyler Estep/AJC

Bad phone photography aside … pretty cool, eh? There’s lots more on tap throughout the season, so make sure to check out the full promotions schedule.

And keep this in mind, too: Marketing guru Jori Palmer said there are still “a few (giveaways) we haven’t announced yet.”

Thanks for reading Braves Report. Tell a friend — and maybe give the AJC’s Sports Daily newsletter a shot, too.

See you Monday.