ARLINGTON, TEXAS – OCTOBER 12: Head athletic trainer George Poulis escorts Adam Duvall #23 of the Atlanta Braves off the field after an injury during the second inning in Game One of the National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Globe Life Field on October 12, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
The Braves will be without Adam Duvall for the remainder of the postseason
The Atlanta Braves took down the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1 of the NLCS and lost outfielder Adam Duvall in the process. He injured his oblique early in the game and is now out for the rest of the postseason.
This has the team shuffling the outfield a bit as rookie Cristian Pache will now get an opportunity to shine. He replaced Duvall in Game 1 and will do the same in Game 2.
Braves reveal new lineup for Game 2
Pache stepped in for Duvall and went 0-1 with two talks before being pulled for Pablo Sandoval in the eighth inning. Talk about a blast from the past.
Game 2 will see Pache in center with Nick Markakis holding down left field and Ronald Acuña Jr. in right. The rookie Pache is an elite defensive prospect, so the change from Duvall to him should not have any negative impacts in the field.
The questions will come on offense as he only had four at-bats during the regular season. The 21-year-old may be on a short leash late in games, meaning we could get another Sandoval sighting if Pache has a bad start Tuesday night.
This lineup is still stacked even without Duvall. In fact, he had the lowest batting average of any qualified hitter on the team during the regular season at .237. Having a designated hitter in the lineup also allows the Braves to avoid a major drop-off at both the eighth and ninth slots in the order.
Pache is now being given the opportunity to become a star in Atlanta earlier than expected. A few hits Tuesday night will put him on that track.