Braves blast Guardians for another series victory

The Braves’ offense bounced back with a season-high 19 hits and Chris Sale returned to form on the mound in a 13-1 win over the Guardians on Sunday at Truist Park.

Another series victory improved the Braves to 4-0-1 in their first five series of the season before they open a three-game set with the Marlins starting Monday at Truist. The Braves (10-6) have a two-game lead for first place in the NL East on Miami to begin the week.

Ozzie Albies and Mauricio Dubón each went 3-for-4 and Jorge Mateo had three singles from the No. 9 hole to lead a Braves offense that was shut out Saturday.

“I think it’s just an opportunity to stay in the lineup, if that makes sense,” said Mateo, who is now 7-for-15 with three RBIs and seven runs scored in seven games this season. “We have a tremendous team, and we have a tremendous lineup, so anytime that I get that opportunity, I just try to make the most of it.”

Sale went six innings, struck out six and worked around eight hits. Despite failing to record a 1-2-3 inning, the only run Sale allowed was on a one-out homer by Rhys Hoskins in the sixth.

Sale’s fifth strikeout of the evening, a punch out of David Fry on a 96-mph fastball at the knees in the fifth inning, was the 2,600th of Sale’s career.

“The line looks cleaner than I think the game actually was,” Sale said. “They did a good job of putting the ball in play. I don’t know if I had any 1-2-3 innings? They were aggressive. That’s a damn good ball club over there. So I think just kind of the some of the situations dictated for me needing to kind of hump up and get some outs when I needed to.”

Sale (3-1) also got plenty of run support from early until late.

The Braves, for the 12th time in 16 games, scored first thanks to a Dubón two-out RBI double that split the gap in left in the second inning. Mateo followed by taking the 10th pitch of his at-bat and lacing a run-scoring single up the middle.

Ronald Acuña Jr.’s double into the left field corner scored Mateo from first, the final run of the Braves’ three-run second inning.

In the fourth, after a single by Albies, Dominic Smith launched his third homer of the season, a 371-foot shot into the seats in front of the Chop House. Albies’ two-out soft single in the fifth plated Matt Olson from third and chased Guardians starter Tanner Bibee from the game.

The Braves’ 6-9 hitters in the starting lineup went 11-for-14 on Sunday and drove in six runs.

“Those guys have been performing since Day One,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “And you know, I think at times when we see our big boys (at the top) start to get going, and then you combine it with what’s going on in the lower half of the order, it’s pretty good.”

Sunday’s visit to Truist Park was not an enjoyable one for Bibee who was knocked around to the tune of 11 hits and eight runs allowed. Both of the Braves’ runs that scored on Kyle Farmer’s two run double off reliever Kolby Allard were charged to Bibee.

Dubón finally capped the four-run fifth with a run-scoring hit to right making it 9-0.

The eight runs allowed by Bibee (0-2) were a career high.

Drake Baldwin’s RBI fielder’s choice, Olson’s RBI double and Austin Riley’s two-run double in the eighth provided the final runs for the Braves who have scored at least 11 runs three times already this season. They only did that eight times the entire ‘25 campaign.