The Atlanta Braves are looking to avoid being swept at the hands of the AL-East leading Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday afternoon.
It’s a matinee series finale, and considering the Braves have dropped the first two games of the series, Atlanta’s division lead is now down to 3.0 games ahead of their weekend showdown with the Philadelphia Phillies.
Before Thursday’s game against the Rays, the Braves revealed their lineup for the series finale. Atlanta’s offense will try to muster runs against Nick Martinez, while Martin Perez gets the ball for the Braves, hoping to keep the Rays off the board.
The Braves lineup features a notable decision regarding Austin Riley.
More MLB on Heavy: New York Mets Quietly Released 2 Players During Marlins Series
Austin Riley Back in 7-Spot in Braves Over
With the lineup drop comes a notable Austin Riley change.
After batting 8th on Wednesday, Riley will slot in at seventh on Thursday afternoon. He has bounced between 7th and 8th in the batting order frequently this year.
Here is the full Braves batting lineup, thanks to @UnderdogMLB:
Braves 9/10: “D. Baldwin C R. Acuña Jr. RF M. Olson 1B M. Harris II CF M. Dubón 2B L. Thomas LF A. Riley 3B B. Hicklen DH H. Kim SS M. Pérez SP”
D. Baldwin C R. Acuña Jr. RF M. Olson 1B M. Harris II CF M. Dubón 2B L. Thomas LF A. Riley 3B B. Hicklen DH H. Kim SS
M. Pérez SP
Some other lineup notes include Sean Murphy being out of the lineup, Ha-Seong Kim in at short, and Brewer Hicklen being the DH. Ozzie Albies is getting the day off, and Mauricio Dubon is playing 2B.
More MLB on Heavy: New York Mets Make Mark Vientos Announcement Before Marlins Finale
Inside Austin Riley’s 2026 Season
Austin Riley has been an every-day player for the Atlanta Braves this season.
Despite playing every day, Riley has struggled with the bat in his hand.
He is currently batting in the .220s, has just 12 home runs, and holds a career-low OPS+.
However, with that being said, if Riley can get hot towards the end of September, the Braves will be in good shape to make noise come October.
Atlanta Braves Make Austin Riley Decision Before Rays Series Finale