Home runs are supposed to be rare at Turner Field this year.
Entering Monday, the Ted had seen just 59 balls leave its yard in 46 games. That’s a 1.28 homer-per-game average — tied for second-lowest in the big leagues.
Monday epitomized an outlier, then, as the Braves and Giants combined for eight home runs in Atlanta’s 12-inning, 9-8 home win. Each team cranked four, which sets a season-high for the Braves.
“That’s unusual in this ballpark,” manager Fredi Gonzalez said after the game.
Brandon Belt started the parade in the second with a shot to left that barely scraped by Eury Perez’s outstretched glove. Brandon Crawford followed Belt with an exact copy of his homer — including Perez’s near highlight-reel rob.
In the third Buster Posey cranked a two-run no-doubter to center field and Crawford hit his second homer in the fourth. And, yes, Perez almost robbed that one, too.
Jace Peterson then ignited Atlanta’s bats in the sixth with a three-run home run to right-center, and Chris Johnson followed with a solo shot to center in the seventh.
“Runners on first and second, I’m just trying to keep it going any way I can,” Peterson said. “Not really trying to hit a home run, but he threw me a change-up, he hung it and I was able to get a good swing on it.”
Peterson went 3-for-5 with the homer, a double and three RBIs. Sunday against the Phillies he went 3-for-4 with another three-run home run, leaving him with two straight games of great production after hitting .174 (16-for-92) in July.
“I wouldn’t say (Peterson’s) been struggling. He’s been swinging the bat pretty good, he’s just having some tough luck, I think,” Chris Johnson said. “This guy’s been robbed a lot, and a guy who works this hard with that kind of talent, he’s not going to stay down very long.”
A.J. Pierzynski smacked home run No. 7 and watched it sail over the right-field wall to tie the game 7-7 in the bottom of the ninth. He went 4-for-6 with the homer and two RBIs Monday, making him 17-for-37 (.459) in his last nine games.
“He’s been swinging the bat well. He’s come up with a lot of big hits this year for us,” Johnson said. “That guy’s been around 20, 30 years in the major leagues. It’s about time he does something good.”
Braves rookie Adonis Garcia capped the night with his walk-off, opposite-field two-run homer in the bottom of the 12th. It’s his third home run since getting called up on July 25.
“Garcia there at the end,” Gonzalez said. “He’s hit three balls. All (have) been right-center to almost straightaway center and there haven’t been any cheap ones.”
It took the Braves six games to hit their previous four home runs.
