Braves 4,
Reds 1
Late Saturday
How the game was won
Freddie Freeman hit a two-run homer in the first inning and Justin Upton and Evan Gattis hit back-to-back home runs in the third inning, more than enough support for rookie pitcher David Hale in a 4-1 victory at Turner Field.
Braves highlights
Hale allowed just two hits, one run and two walks with four strikeouts in a career-high eight innings, and the Marietta native was nearly perfect after giving up a two-out RBI double by Ryan Ludwick in the first. Hale retired the last 14 batters he faced and recorded 22 outs in his last 22 batters, reducing that 1-0 first-inning deficit to a blip. Craig Kimbrel got his eighth save.
Reds highlight
Ludwick climbed the left-field fence in the third inning, and robbed Freeman of a home run and eventually it kept the Braves from hitting three consecutive home runs in an inning for the second time in two weeks.
Notable
It was the 21st time in 23 games that a Braves starter allowed two or fewer earned runs. They have a majors-leading 1.65 starters ERA, more than a half-run better than the next-best, and the Braves’ 2.14 overall team ERA is also the best in the majors by a significant margin. … Hale is 2-0 with a 1.83 ERA in six career starts and said Saturday was probably the best he’s thrown in the majors. … Justin Upton has 142 career homers, 36 of which have been hit in April. That’s 10 more than he’s hit in any other month, and more homers in March/April since 2008 than all other major leaguers except Ryan Braun (43) and Albert Pujols (40). Justin Upton has hit .486 with six homers in 11 home games this season, and .191 with one homer in 12 road games.
Quoting them
“A kid like that who’s only got six major league starts under his belt, it’s good to help settle him down (by getting him a lead). But you’ve still got to go out there and throw strikes, and sometimes when the game isn’t close a young kid will have a mental lapse. But I didn’t see any from David at all today.” — Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez
“Yeah, it’s a little pressure. But I think at the same time, we kind of feed off of each other. It makes each one of us want to go out there and one-up the next guy, and just keep competing with each other. Friendly-wise, obviously. And just keep everything going the way it’s been going.” — Hale
“He’s not the type of guy to get rattled. He’s cool, calm and collected most of the time. So it’s not surprising to us.” — Justin Upton
