ATLANTA -- The Braves keep stacking wins, and the timing of a few lineup tweaks has helped fuel the surge.
On Friday night at Truist Park, Atlanta beat the Rockies 6-4 for its fifth straight victory, stretching the club’s lead in the National League East to 5 1/2 games over the second-place Phillies. That came one day after Ha-Seong Kim delivered an improbable walk-off hit and Chris Sale turned in one of the year’s most impressive starts to finish off a three-game sweep of the Dodgers.
One of the clearest signs of momentum came from Ronald Acuña Jr., who answered a day off with his first three-hit game of the season. Manager Walt Weiss sat the struggling 2023 NL MVP on Thursday, and Acuña responded by driving the ball with authority on Friday. He produced a 110.8 mph exit velocity on a sixth-inning single and a 108.3 mph exit velocity on a fifth-inning double that came just before Michael Harris II’s two-run homer.
That double came against Tomoyuki Sugano’s 92.8 mph four-seam fastball, which stood out because Acuña had entered the game hitting just .119 with three extra-base hits - two doubles and a homer - against four-seamers this year. The problem hasn’t been limited to premium velocity, either. Acuña came into the night hitting .125 (2-for-16) in plate appearances that ended against four-seamers thrown 93 mph or softer.
The Braves also appear to be getting more from Sean Murphy after a change in usage. Weiss said before Wednesday’s game against the Dodgers that he planned to use Drake Baldwin at designated hitter in at least half of the remaining games to help limit the wear on his legs.
That move gives Murphy more chances behind the plate and, so far, more chances at the plate too. Murphy entered that day hitting .136 (6-for-44) with one extra-base hit, then went 5-for-8 with two doubles and a homer over his next two games.
Murphy delivered again Friday with a two-out RBI double in Atlanta’s three-run second inning. Baldwin added two singles and has collected multiple hits in three of his past four games.
Michael Harris II has also started to look like himself again. He doubled in that second inning and later capped his multihit night with his 22nd homer of the season.
That two-run shot gave him two homers in his past five games. Before going deep in the ninth inning of Sunday’s Little League Classic win over the Brewers, Harris had been stuck in a 20-game homerless stretch.
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Chris Sale Just Created A Braves Rotation Dilemma
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Chris Sale Revealed What Unleashed His Extra Gear Vs Dodgers
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Sale said the occasion mattered, pointing to the atmosphere, the adrenaline and the presence of a generational player on the other side as part of what unlocked his extra gear. For Atlanta, it was another reminder that even deep into the season, Sales stuff and edge can still swing a series, and his line now sits at a 2.06 ERA with 177 strikeouts and a 13-9 record. [Read more 🡒]