The barrage began before the sun had even set in Kansas City.
The Braves blasted their way to a 10-3 victory over the Royals on Friday at Kauffman Stadium. Atlanta (10-4), which has won four in a row, scored in double digits for the first time this season.
Five observations on the Braves’ win:
1. From the start, the Braves sent a clear message: They would not mess around with an inferior opponent.
They homered five times, including going back to back in the first inning. Their stars played well, and they received contributions from others. They didn’t let the Royals hang around.
Matt Olson and Austin Riley launched back-to-back homers in the first inning, while Sam Hilliard homered in the second, Sean Murphy did it in the fifth and Ronald Acuña Jr. followed with one of his own in the sixth.
The Braves’ top four hitters in the lineup – Acuña, Olson, Riley and Murphy, in order – all deposited balls over the wall. That is a pretty decent recipe for success. And when Hillard, the No. 9 hitter, also homers? That’s a testament to a lineup’s length.
“It’s nice. It’s fun to come to the yard every day, I’ll tell you that,” Riley said. “Guys come here to work really hard and we pull for each other. It’s fun to finally go out there and compete with a guy. You’re going to war with these guys and they bring it every day, and that makes it easy.”
Atlanta never allowed Royals starter Brady Singer to settle into his outing. Acuña hit the second pitch of the game for a single, which began the eventual onslaught.
2. Riley’s homer marked the 100th of his career.
“It’s special,” Riley said. “This game is so hard, so you don’t take anything for granted. Definitely going to take that one. I think my dad will absolutely love that one and keep it at the house, right up there next to my first one.”
Before Riley and Ozzie Albies (who also hit his 100th career homer this week), multiple Braves had hit their 100th homers in the same season three times, most recently when Chipper Jones and Javy Lopez did it in 1998.
3. In the top of the second inning, third base umpire Manny Gonzalez ejected Braves manager Brian Snitker for arguing a call.
Olson lifted a ball down the left-field line and it landed near the wall – and was ruled foul. Then the umpiring crew reversed course, calling it a fair ball, meaning they had to judge whether to give Olson a single or a double.
They gave him a single, and put Acuña, who had been on first, on second base. It looked like this ball, based on its trajectory and distance, would’ve been at least at double for Olson.
Gonzalez ejected Snitker, who was fired up. Snitker then got his money’s worth. This was Snitker’s first ejection this season and 17th of his career.
“I just disagreed with where they placed the runners,” Snitker said. “They got the call right, but I don’t think they placed the runners in the right spot. We had one of the fastest guys in Major League Baseball (Acuña) at first and they’re gonna put him at second base on a ball down the line off the wall. I’d have been OK if they would’ve scored him, quite honestly.”
Did the umpires give him an explanation?
“No, they didn’t,” Snitker said. “That’s a judgment (call) on that, and I didn’t agree with it.
Murphy soon provided justice when he smacked a two-run double that scored both Acuña and Olson.
4. Acuña this season: .390 batting average, 1.056 OPS, three homers, 11 RBIs.
Olson: .304 average, 1.070 OPS, five homers, 14 RBIs.
Riley: .327 average, .967 OPS, three homers, eight RBIs.
Those hitters make up the top third in Atlanta’s order.
“It feels really good to have (those types of players) in the lineup and hitting in that order there,” Acuña said through interpreter Franco García. “You know at any time, anyone’s capable of hitting a homer.”
5. In his first major-league game, Vaughn Grissom had an interesting night defensively.
It included an error on a ball hit right at him. He did make a nice play, but others were iffy.
What should he take away from this?
“Just knowing he’s going to play tomorrow,” Snitker said. “That’s the biggest thing.”
Stat to know
21 - The Braves rank fifth in baseball, and third in the National League, with 21 homers.
Quotable
“It looks good on paper, you show up at spring training, and you want to come out and obviously have a good start. Ronnie (Acuña) has just been setting the tone like crazy. Every time his spot comes around, I feel like I’ve been hitting with him on base every single at-bat and stealing bags. Homer tonight. He’s doing it all.” - Matt Olson on the offense
Up next
On Saturday, right-hander Bryce Elder will start against the Royals, who will send lefty Kris Bubic to the mound. First pitch is at 4:10 p.m. ET.
