Brewers vs Braves arrives Friday, June 19, with Martin Perez set to start for the Braves against Jacob Misiorowski at 7:15 p.m. EDT. Atlanta comes in having lost six of its last seven games, and the standings margin is tight enough that one loss or win can shift the half-game edge the Braves hold over the Brewers.
Martin Perez Gets the Ball
Perez has given the Braves a usable start line in 62 total innings, with a 0.8 fWAR and a 70/93/94 line. That is the arm Atlanta chose for a game that needs length as much as damage control, especially after three consecutive series losses pushed the club into this stretch.
The matchup puts him in direct contrast with Misiorowski, who has already reached 3.9 fWAR through 14 starts and 87 innings in 2026. In his last eight starts before Friday, he posted an 80/9 K/BB ratio and a 4/18/38 line, the kind of run that forces opponents to treat every inning like a leverage spot.
Misiorowski's Recent Run
Misiorowski also comes in off a start that left little room for hitters. Against the Phillies, he faced the minimum, allowed a hit, threw 95 pitches, and struck out 15 batters. That is the kind of workload that can turn a Friday night into a short outing for the other dugout if Atlanta cannot force deep counts.
The Brewers starter has already been described in the source material as leading MLB in pitching fWAR, FIP-, and xFIP-. Perez does not need to match that level of dominance pitch for pitch; he needs to keep the game from turning into a bullpen chase before the Braves can settle into the middle innings.
Atlanta's Slump, Atlanta's Task
The Braves enter this one after a 1-6 run over their last seven games. They were also a half-game ahead of the Brewers before the series in Atlanta, so the first game carries more weight than a typical mid-June start.
That leaves one practical assignment for Atlanta: get Perez through enough quality work to keep the game close against the current best pitcher in baseball, then make the margin small enough for the later innings to matter. If that does not happen, the standings gap can flip fast, and the Braves will have spent another night trying to climb out of a slide instead of ending it.
