Nick Pivetta allowed four hits and one run with three walks and seven strikeouts across six innings in a no-decision against the Braves on Friday.
Pivetta was greeted rudely by Ronald Acuña Jr. who hammered the first pitch of the game 467 feet into the bleachers. Then, things didn’t get a whole lot easier as the Braves worked plenty of long at-bats and put consistent traffic on the bases. Yet, that Acuña Jr. was the extent of the damage against him. Notably, this was the first time all season – and the first time since May 24th, 2023 – that Pivetta threw more curveballs than fastballs in a start. Perhaps that wrinkle helped him to regularly work around trouble and work a quality start against this talented Braves’ lineup, but it’s nice to see Pivetta’s growth through the early part of the season. His next start is scheduled to come against the Marlins.