Sometimes a team comes out of a break looking fresh. The Atlanta Braves looked downright dangerous.
In the opener against the Texas Rangers, Atlanta rolled to a 15-1 win behind a lineup that kept stacking innings and a Chris Sale outing that never let Texas settle in. The Braves struck first in the bottom of the second when Drake Baldwin singled to bring home Dominic Smith, and from there the pressure never really eased.
Baldwin kept driving the game early in the bottom of the fourth, launching the night’s biggest swing with a three-run homer that scored Jim Jarvis and Brewer Hicklen and pushed Atlanta ahead by five. The next inning, Jarvis joined in with a double in the bottom of the fifth to score Smith and make it 7-0. Baldwin then came right back with another single, this one bringing in Jarvis for an 8-0 cushion.
Michael Harris added another burst in the bottom of the seventh, ripping an RBI double that scored Baldwin, Ozzie Albies and Matt Olson to stretch the lead to 11-0.
Texas finally got on the board in the top of the eighth, avoiding the shutout when Nicky Lopez singled in Cam Cauley for the Rangers’ lone run of the night.
Atlanta wasn’t done. An RBI single later brought in Hicklen and Jorge Mateo for the final two runs, closing out a lopsided opener with the bats fully awake.
Sale did his part, too. He worked seven innings, allowed two hits, gave up no earned runs and struck out six. With that kind of pitching behind a lineup that kept pouring it on, the Braves had both sides of the game working exactly as they wanted.
In Other News...
Braves Reunion With Familiar Starter Comes With One Major Warning
Kevin Gausmans name still carries some familiarity in Atlanta, where the right-hander once came over in a trade, flashed enough to look like a useful addition and then quickly ran into trouble the next season. Since then, he has rebuilt his value with San Francisco and later landed a five-year deal with Toronto, but his overall Blue Jays run has been uneven enough that his status has drifted back into the conversation as the deadline approaches.
The latest version of Gausman is also the one that should give the Braves pause. He is in a difficult season by his standards, and while a reunion would make for an easy storyline, it is hardly a clean fit if Toronto asks for a meaningful return. Atlanta has reason to look, but also plenty of reason to treat this as a risky possibility rather than a move to rush into. [Read more 🡒]
Braves And Phillies Linked To Same Deadline Arm In Major NL East Twist
The National League East has a way of turning every trade rumor into a rivalry subplot, and this one fits the bill. With the Braves and Phillies both sitting near the top of the race and looking like buyers as the deadline approaches, the same pitching market is suddenly drawing attention from two clubs that know each other too well. It is the kind of setup that can shape not just August, but the path to October.
Detroits pitching depth has become part of that conversation, with speculation tying one of the markets most coveted arms to both contenders. The appeal is obvious for Atlanta, which could use another impact starter if the front office decides to push hard, but the price would be steep and the competition fierce. For now, it remains only a possibility, though the idea of the Braves and Phillies chasing the same prize is enough to make the rest of the division pay attention. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Deadline Pressure Just Reached A Point Fans Know Too Well
The Braves are heading into the trade deadline with the kind of shopping list that usually means the front office cannot afford to miss. Mark Bowmans read on the situation points to a club that needs pitching help and a legitimate bat if it wants to give itself a better path into 2026, and the discussion around possible targets has already widened to include starters from several different clubs, along with a few hitters who could deepen the lineup.
What makes the next move so tricky is that Atlanta does not just need volume, it needs the right fit. A left-handed hitter has been raised as a particularly useful addition, which adds another layer to the deadline calculus as the Braves weigh whether to chase more rotation stability, offensive balance, or both before the market tightens and the asking prices start to climb. [Read more 🡒]