Matt Olson changed the game with one swing Sunday at Truist Park, and the Braves rode that blast to a 5-3 win over Arizona to keep from being swept in a second straight home series against the Diamondbacks.
The big moment came in the seventh inning. Olson stepped in with the green light on a 3-0 count and crushed Brandyn Garcia’s 95.8 mph sinker into the tunnel behind the wall in center field. The three-run homer was his 36th of the season and his MLB-leading 66th extra-base hit, and it pushed Atlanta in front for good.
Olson’s latest shot also carried him into rare Braves company. With 30 doubles already on his ledger, he recorded his third 30-30 season and his second since joining Atlanta, after posting 44 doubles and 34 homers in 2022. That puts him alongside Austin Riley, who did it from 2021-23, and Ozzie Albies, who did it in 2021 and 2023, as one of 10 Braves ever to reach the mark more than once.
Since Olson arrived in Atlanta before the 2022 season, no one in the National League has piled up more extra-base hits than him. His total stands at 366.
The Braves had carried a 2-1 lead into the top of the seventh before Didier Fuentes entered in relief and immediately gave up a tying homer to Ildemaro Vargas, the first hitter he saw. Atlanta answered right back in the bottom half, and Olson’s homer flipped the game back in the Braves’ favor for good.
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Braves May Have A Creative Answer For Their AJ Smith-Shawver Dilemma
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There is also a broader wrinkle tied to Grant Holmes, whose place in the rotation has been a point of confidence for Walt Weiss. The Braves have at least considered a tandem-style approach that would let Holmes begin games before Smith-Shawver handles the next stretch, a sign the club is still searching for the cleanest way to balance innings, roles and roster flexibility. For now, the final call remains unsettled, which keeps the door open to more than one outcome. [Read more 🡒]