Eli White steals the show as Braves enter win column with split-squad defeat at Pirates

Spencer Schwellenbach made the start against Pittsburgh. The righty, coming off of a stellar rookie season with Atlanta, threw an admirable two innings. He allowed just one hit and notched two strikeouts without walking any batters. Schwellenbach needed just 23 pitches to get through two innings, and threw 14 of them for strikes. His solid Spring Training outing was to be expected, but nevertheless set the Braves up in Tuesday’s battle.

The real star of the win over the Pirates was Eli White. The outfielder, who has spent the last two seasons with Atlanta after beginning his career with the Texas Rangers, started in center field for the Braves. He went 3-for-3 as the lead off hitter.

White kicked the offense off with a single in his first at-bat, smacking a 98.5 mph ground ball at an exit velocity of 104.1 mph, but he was caught stealing second. When he made his next appearance at the plate in the top of the third, White notched a second single, this time on a line drive to left field.

In his final at-bat of the game, White recorded his third single of the matchup. A Nacho Alvarez Jr. ground out allowed him to advance to second, and White brought the Braves a 2-1 lead when he scored off a Bryan De La Cruz single.

The 30-year-old outfielder batted .282 for the Braves last season, the best average of his career. This was up significantly from .071 in 2023. After his appearance against Pittsburgh, it appears as though White is ready to contribute even more significantly from the plate as the Braves look ahead to the 2025 season.