If Monday was a sign of what’s to come, the Braves must be feeling pretty good about their offense.
The Braves fielded their regular lineup against the Pirates, and the results were about as promising as they could’ve hoped, translating to a 6-2 win in a Grapefruit League game.
Lead-off man Ender Inciarte opened the game with a double before stealing third. He scored on Josh Donaldson’s single up the middle, his first hit and RBI of the spring.
Ronald Acuna capped the first with a two-run homer that ricocheted off the scoreboard in left-center. It was Acuna’s second home run.
“He’s starting to zone in,” said bench coach Walt Weiss, who’s filling in for manager Brian Snitker as he attends to a personal matter. “When he barrels them up like that, they’re loud and they go far. He’s in a good place.”
The day didn’t get much better for Pirates starter Nick Kingham. After the Braves’ second was thwarted by a triple play, they tacked on another pair of runs in the third. Freddie Freeman opened with a double and Acuna walked. Nick Markakis singled to score Freeman and Brian McCann grounded out to score Acuna.
On the day, chalk up two-hit days for Inciarte, Acuna and Freeman. Eighth-hitter Charlie Culberson also had a double.
“You’ll see as we get deeper into spring here, the focus becomes more fine-tuned,” Weiss said. “Good to see our big boys play well. They put together some good at-bats in that first inning. That lineup is going to be a tough first inning for teams right out of the gate. I think we showed that today.”
If the Braves are going to repeat as National League East champs, the bats will be the primary reason why. The addition of Donaldson, along with a full season of Acuna, potentially makes the Braves a top-tier unit.
Monday was a screening of what’s expected to be the team’s main lineup. The takeaway: They’re going to work counts and take advantage of mistakes.
“Offensively, I think we’re going to be able to do some things this year,” Donaldson said last week. “It’s going to take some time this season to get that identity as a team. Every year is a new year, and you have to approach it seeing how everyone gels together.”
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