The Braves continued their ascension in the NL East standings with an 8-4 win over Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday night, moving them into sole possession of second place.
All it took to get the Braves’ previously underperforming offense on track - an abundance of power from the lineup and some help from the Philadelphia defense.
The Braves’ offense improved in each of the first three games of their first series of the season against the Phillies, culminating in an offensive outburst. Catcher William Contreras, third baseman Austin Riley and shortstop Dansby Swanson mashed solo homers, and Swanson continued his strong stretch on offense with four hits, two runs and two RBIs.
Effective hitting with runners in scoring position was another theme throughout the series that returned on Wednesday. The Braves finished 4-for-8 with runners in scoring position in Monday’s loss and were 3-for-8, including Contreras’ walk-off single, in a 6-5 win a day later. Even with its top hitter, Ronald Acuña, scratched due to right quad tightness, the Braves’ offense delivered in key moments Wednesday.
With two outs and the score tied in the second inning, second baseman Ozzie Albies laced a single to drive home two runs and Swanson followed it up with another RBI single.
“Two-out hits are hard to get,” manager Brian Snitker said. “When you start doing that, that’s about as good a building block as you can have.”
For all of the Braves’ success at the plate, credit for their go-ahead run in the fifth inning belonged, in large part, to the Phillies’ defensive miscues.
After Swanson reached on a single to start the inning, Phillies reliever Jose Alvarado threw a wild pitch that caused Swanson to take off toward second base. Philadelphia catcher J.T. Realmuto fired a throw toward second that clipped second baseman Jean Segura’s glove and evaded a quick snag attempt from shortstop Bryson Stott. As the ball rolled to the outfield, center fielder Odubel Herrera whiffed with his glove, allowing the ball to roll under his glove and toward the warning track.
Swanson said he stayed aggressive on the basepaths because of Alvarado’s tendency for breaking pitches and took full advantage of the errors, scoring from first to put the Braves ahead for good. Riley compounded the momentum swing a couple pitches later by hitting a sinker over the right-field wall.
“In this game, you’ll take every break you can,” Swanson said. “We’re going to continue to ride with this momentum that we have.”
The defensive calamity came one night after another egregious Philadelphia error helped drive home a crucial run for the Braves’ offense. On Tuesday, two Phillies defenders nearly collided in the outfield and allowed Acuña’s ninth-inning sacrifice fly to hit the outfield grass, tying the game and putting the eventual winning run in scoring position.
The Braves will finish their series against the Phillies Thursday while boasting an offense with one hitter on a 12-game hitting streak in left-fielder Marcell Ozuna, another with an eight-game hitting streak in Swanson and power threats across the lineup. After shuffling the lineup before the series opener against Philadelphia, Snitker said the offensive production is what he had been hoping for when he made the changes.
“The last couple nights have been encouraging for the offense,” Snitker said. “All the way through the lineup, they’ve been pretty good.”
