Category: postseason

The Atlanta Braves Clinch the NL East For the FOURTH Year in a Row!!

Wow! What a series this was, and what a season this has been for our Atlanta Braves. So many things led up to this fourth annual Division Title. And I feel this was the most rewarding of them all.

When the Braves lost Ronald Acuña Jr. on July 11 with a torn ACL, so many people gave up hope on Atlanta saying, “How can we win without Acuña?”. Let me tell you…my faith in what these Atlanta Braves can do did not waver one bit. If anything, I felt that since so many people gave up on the Braves, that they would be even better and knock everyone’s socks off with how good they could be. Atlanta definitely proved every single one of those doubters wrong! 🙂

When you think about how the Braves got to this clinch there are so many things that come to mind. But I firmly believe the most significant of those is all the trade deadline deals made by Alex Anthpoulos, the Atlanta Braves general manager. He went out and got Joc Pederson, Adam Duvall, Jorge Soler, Richard Rodriguez, Stephen Vogt, and Eddie Rosario. Joc Pederson came earlier in the season, but he has still played a big part in this comeback season for Atlanta.

After the deadline and the new players started playing for the Braves, it was like things just started to click. In August, Atlanta won nine games in a row and didn’t look back. In those nine games, the Braves went from being in fourth place in the NL East standings, to being in first place. That is HUGE!

Once the Braves got to first place, it still wasn’t easy. The Mets had gone on a losing streak, but the Philadelphia Phillies had gotten hot fast and were in second place in the division and kept the race interesting. I think it made their clinch even better for it to be against the Phillies – their biggest rivals. For the Atlanta Braves to have gone through everything that they went through, to fight their way back into the division race and maintain first place, this was a very memorable game and season for the Braves.

I can’t wait to see what the Postseason has in store for them!!

Braves vs. Giants Sereis Wrap

Coming into this series everyone knew how important it was. The San Fransisco Giants had the best record in all of MLB. However, the Atlanta Braves know how to win ballgames! They won the series, winning two out of three.

Game One: Max Fried vs. Kevin Gausman, Braves won 6-5

This was a good, exciting game. The Braves were behind all game until the bottom of the seventh inning. Then they had an offensive burst in the bottom of the sixth inning and were able to barley hold on a win.

Even though he didn’t get the win, Max Fried pitched a pretty good game for Atlanta. He went six innings, allowed five hits, four runs, he allowed ZERO walks, and had five strikeouts. He did not pitch a bad game. He just had a couple slip-ups and the Giants took advantage of them.

In the top of the first inning, San Fransisco took a two run lead. Buster Posey hit a two-run home run, giving them an early 2-0 lead. Max Fried does not give up that many home runs, but in a 3-0 count, he hung a pitch in the strike zone and the Giants catcher took advantage of it.

The Giants added on another run in the top of the second inning. Kevin Gausman grounded into an RBI force out, making it a 3-0 game.

The Braves got one of those runs back in the bottom of the second. Adam Duvall launched a solo shot to left centerfield, making it a 3-1 game.

In the bottom of the third inning, Austin Riley made it a 3-2 game. He hit an RBI single that scored Jorge Soler who singled to start the inning and advanced to second on a wild pitch.

However, in the top of the fourth inning, the Giants got that run right back. Tommy La Stella hit an RBI double that scored Wilmer Flores making it a 4-2 game.

The Braves had a huge offensive burst in the bottom of the seventh inning. It turned out to be crucial to their win. Adam Duvall started the inning with a strikeout, then Joc Pederson reached base on a walk. Guillermo Heredia came on as a pinch hitter. He hit a first-pitch single that advanced Pederson to second. With two on and one out, Ozzie Albies was up to bat. On the first pitch he saw, he hit a booming RBI double that scored Joc Pederson and advanced Hereida to third. His double made it a 4-3 game. San Fransisco went to their bullpen, and brought on Zach Littell. Jorge Soler didn’t greet him very kindly. On the FIRST-PITCH he saw, Soler hit a monstrous three-run home run. His homer gave the Braves the lead at 6-4.

Will Smith came on to pitch the ninth inning for Atlanta. Throughout most, if not all of his appearances, Smith gives up at least one run. He did the same thing in this appearance. Smith gave up a solo home run to Wilmer Flores, the first batter he faced making it a 6-5 game. Luckily, Will Smith was able to hold on to that one run lead, and the Braves took game one.

Game Two: Huascar Ynoa vs. Logan Webb, Braves lost 5-0

Huascar Ynoa pitched well for the Braves. He gave up two runs on three hits over six innings of work. He also had three walks and three strikeouts. Overall, Ynoa did not pitch a bad game, he just didn’t get any offensive support — and the bullpen didn’t help him out.

San Fransisco scored their first run in the top of the first inning. Tommy La Stella, their second baseman, hit a solo home run giving the Giants a 1-0 lead. To give them a 2-0 lead, La Stella then hit a sac fly in the top of the third. Those were the only two runs that Ynoa surrendered.

The Giants did not score again until the seventh inning. Richard Rodríguez was pitching for Atlanta. He gave up a first-pitch, solo homer to Mike Yastrzemski. That made it a 3-0 game. Rodríguez has been very lights-out for the Braves since they got him at the trade deadline. This was one of the very few runs he has surrendered.

Chris Martin gave up the other two and final runs to the San Fransisco Giants. He surrendered an RBI single to Darin Ruf, and a first-pitch RBI double to Yastrzemski to make the score 5-0.

The Braves had a couple chances to score throughout this game, but they just couldn’t pull the trigger.

Game Three: Ian Anderson vs. Anthony DeSclafani, Braves won 9-0

Well, the Giants shut them out the night before, so it was only fitting that the Atlanta Braves did the same to them!

Ian Anderson pitched very well for the Braves. He pitched 5.2 innings, allowed four hits, zero runs, only to walks, and he had ZERO strikeouts. What?!? Zero strikeouts? That is an unusual thing to see from a pitcher in this day and age. But Anderson’s stuff was sharp and the Giants hitters were constantly making contact and getting balls on the ground. Not to mention, Atlanta has A-plus defense in the infield, so Anderson knew if he got the ball on the ground, he didn’t have to worry.

The Braves offense opened up in the fourth inning. Jorge Soler led off the inning with a solo home run to get Atlanta on the board with a 1-0 lead. Freddie Freeman reached base on a single and then, to give them a 3-0 lead, Austin Riley hit a two-run homer.

Eddie Rosario, playing in his first game for Atlanta, had a two-RBI triple that scored Joc Pederson and Dansby Swanson. The Giants reviewed the play at third (Rosario was originally called safe) the called went in the Braves favor and was upheld, making it a 5-0 Braves lead.

To lead off the bottom of the seventh inning, Ozzie Albies had a double. Jorge Soler reached base after Albies on a single. Freeman had an RBI single that scored Ozzie, extending the Braves lead to 6-0. To make it a 7-0 lead, Joc Pederson scored Soler on a sac fly.

Atlanta scored their final two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. Guillermo Heredia scored on a wild pitch to make it an 8-0 score. Then, to add the final blow, Ozzie Albies crushed a solo home run into the left field seats, making it a final score of 9-0!

—

This was a crucial series for the Braves. They played every game hard and with everything they had. It paid off. When you play with confidence and a reason to play, you’ve got a shot at winning no matter what type of team you are playing.

Braves vs. Phillies Series Wrap

This series for the Atlanta Braves – against their division rivals, the Philadelphia Phillies – was the start of the most crucial road trip of the season. At the end of the road trip, Atlanta will have played nine games in eight days: four against the Phillies and five against the New York Mets. So all of those games are within the Braves’ division, and I believe this series will make or break the Braves. If they don’t win at least one of the series, they will continue to get further and further back in the standing and have a much harder time at trying win the NL East, let alone trying to make it into the postseason.

Game One: Charlie Morton vs. Matt Moore, Braves won 7-2

This game was a great way for the Atlanta Braves to start this crucial series! Everything seemed to fire right on all cylinders.

Charlie Morton pitched very well. He went six innings, allowed four hits, two runs, four walks, and he had eight strikeouts. His command was good, he never really got into any trouble, and, for the most part, he was able to have control of the strike zone. His solid start from the mound was a key part of Atlanta’s win.

To start off the scoring for the Braves, Freddie Freeman had an RBI single that scored my man, Ozzie Albies, who reached base on a double in the previous at-bat.

Atlanta added onto their lead in the third inning. To start the inning, Charlie Morton struck out, and Joc Pederson grounded out to first. So with two outs, Ozzie and Freddie both had first pitch singles to keep the inning alive. Austin Riley then walked to load the bases. With two outs and the bases loaded, Dansby Swanson was up to bat. On the second pitch he saw, Swanson hit a GRAND SLAM to make it a 4-0 game – all Atlanta! That grand slam was the FIRST of Dansby Swanson’s career, and it was a good one!

The Braves scored yet another run in the top of the fourth when Orlando Arcia hit a solo home run. He knew it was gone right off the bat, and it went a long way!

Philadelphia scored two in the bottom of the seventh but couldn’t add on anymore runs. And, to score their final run, Austin Riley had a bases loaded walk in the top of the ninth to score Pablo Sandoval who reached base on a walk to start the ninth inning.

Game Two: Max Fried vs. Zack Wheeler, Braves lost 5-1

Lack of offense pretty much wraps up why the Braves didn’t win this game. Their pitching was good, but they gave up too many runs that Atlanta’s offense couldn’t make up for. We’ve seen it so much this season: they win one game and lose the next one (or two), over and over again.

Max Fried gave the Braves a pretty solid outing. He went five innings, allowed six hits, four runs, four walks, and he had six strikeouts. Fried hung a couple pitches and made a few mistakes, which the Phillis’ bats were all over.

The Braves scored their one and only run in the top of the third inning when Freddie Freeman had an RBI single to score Ozzie Albies, who had reached base on a double in the previous at-bat. That made it a 1-1 game. (The Phillies scored in the bottom of the first on a solo home run by J.T. Realmuto.

The Philadelphia Phillies scored four more times throughout the rest of the game, to make the final score 5-1, Philadelphia.

The Braves had a hard time producing offense in this game, but it was nice to see their bullpen only allow one run over four innings of relief. Atlanta’s bullpen seems to be getting better slowly but surely, and it’s nice to see them not blow a game every outing.

Game Three: Drew Smyly vs. Vince Velasquez, Braves won 15-3

Well, if you can’t tell by the score, this was an all-around good win for the Atlanta Braves. Their starting and relief pitching was very good, offense was through the roof, and defensively they did well!

Drew Smyly only went four innings, he left the game due to pain in his left knee. In those four innings he allowed three hits, zero runs, three walks, and he had three strikeouts. It would’ve been nice to have seen Smyly get the win, but obviously his health comes first, which is ultimately why he was taken out.

The Braves started off their scoring in the top of the first inning, when Freddie Freeman hit a two run home run to give them an early 2-0 lead. Abraham Almonte added onto their lead in the top of the second when he hit a solo home run, making it 3-0 Atlanta.

In the top of the third inning, Atlanta once again added onto their lead. Ozzie Albies started the inning with a ground out, and then Freeman followed him with a single. His single was followed by a walk to red-hot Austin Riley. Dansby Swanson had an RBI double that allowed Freddie to score, and advanced Riley to third, making it 4-0. Almonte had another hit – this time it was a two-RBI single that scored both Riley and Swanson, extending Atlanta’s lead to 6-0.

The Braves once again added onto their lead in the top of the sixth inning, on an RBI single by Joc Pederson that scored Guillermo Heredia, making it 7-0.

Philadelphia scored one run in the bottom of the sixth inning on an RBI double by Rhys Hoskins to make it a 7-1 game, Braves still on top.

As if they hadn’t scored enough runs already, the Atlanta Braves decided to add on some more! To start off the eighth inning, Guillermo Heredia reached base on a fielding error. Pablo Sandoval struck out to make the first out. Joc Pederson followed his strikeout with a single, and then my man Ozzie Albies, hit a gigantic three-run bomb making it 10-1 Atlanta. After Ozzie’s monstrous homer, Freeman walked and then Austin Riley hit a two-run shot, making it 12-1 Braves. WOW!

Philly got two more in the bottom of the eighth inning on an RBI fielder’s choice and a sac fly, to make it 12-3.

And then, to add the final blow for Atlanta, Joc Pederson ended his fantastic night at the plate with a three-run home run, making the final score 15-3 Atlanta. Way to go, Braves!

Game Four: Touki Toussaint vs. Aaron Nola, Braves lost 2-1

Touki Toussaint pitched extremely well for the Braves. He went seven innings, allowed five hits, one run, ZERO walks, and he had ten strikeouts… TEN! Not to mention he pitched a career high in innings-pitched. One slip-up cost Touki the game… but even though he got the loss, he pitched very well and should be proud. It is so nice to have Touki back in the lineup!

That one run Toussaint allowed came in the bottom of the fourth inning. Jean Segura hit a solo home run to make it 1-0 Phillies. They added onto that lead four innings later. In the bottom of the eighth inning, their second baseman Ronald Torreyes hit a solo home run to make it 2-0 Philadelphia.

The Braves scored their one and only run in the top of the ninth inning. It came on a two out, two-strike home run from Austin Riley to get Atlanta on the board, making it 2-1.

Atlanta didn’t have much luck against Aaron Nola, but at least they were able to score one off of him. But, again, here is where we see the struggles of Atlanta. They go from winning a game 15-3, and the next game they can’t produce any offense. This is yet another area where the Braves need to step it up if they have any hopes of making it to the playoffs.