MIAMI – Freddie Freeman hit a pair of home runs to power Atlanta to an early lead, Jose Bautista hit his first homer for the Braves, and Ender Inciarte hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning to pretty much put the game away Saturday.
But despite all those long balls, it was an eighth-inning walk-a-thon started by Freeman that created the decisive runs in a 10-5 win against the Marlins on a night when the Braves got the best and worst of what Bautista has at this late point in his career.
After the Braves loaded the bases against reliever Drew Steckenrider with the score tied in the eighth on a Freeman walk, Nick Markakis single and Inciarte’s epic 13-pitch walk, Tyler Flowers drew an eight-pitch walk to give the Braves a 6-5 lead. Then Junichi Tazawa replaced Steckenrider and walked Johan Camargo for a two-run lead.
Freeman had three hits and Markakis, Inciarte and Flowers had two hits apiece for the Braves, who clinched at least a split of the four-game series and won for the ninth time in their past 10 road games to remain atop the National League East standings.
Freeman drove in three runs with homers in the first and fifth innings as Atlanta built a 4-1 lead, and Bautista hit his first homer for the Braves to start the sixth, his fourth hit in 24 at-bats since being brought up from Triple-A.
But it was what Bautista did one inning earlier that spoiled what had been an impressive performance by prized rookie pitcher Mike Soroka.
The 37-year-old third baseman’s two-out fielding error on a bases-loaded grounder in the fifth inning led to four unearned runs and an early exit for Soroka after Derek Dietrich followed with a three-run double for a 5-4 Marlins lead.
In his third start Soroka, at 20 the youngest pitcher in the majors, was charged with eight hits, five runs (one earned) and one walk with a career-high seven strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings.
Credit: Wilfredo Lee
Credit: Wilfredo Lee
Bautista also showed limited range on a Starlin Castro grounder two batters before the error, the ball fielded by shortstop Camargo on the edge of the outfield grass after it bounced past Bautista. Camargo had no chance to make a throw strong enough for the out with Castro running.
Soroka retired the first two batters in the inning, including his career-high seventh strikeout, and was ahead in the count 1-2 against Martin Prado before the former Brave singled to center. Castro followed with his infield hit, again on a 1-2 count, and slugger Justin Bour walked to load the bases.
Brian Anderson followed with a bouncer to the left side and Bautista came forward to make the play, only to have the ball carom off his glove and away as Prado scored. Dietrich followed with a double off the top of the left-center wall to clear the bases and put the Marlins ahead.
Soroka was replaced by Peter Moylan, who struck out Miguel Rojas to end the eventful inning.
Bautista led off the next inning and homered on an 0-1 fastball to tie. He was replaced by Ryan Flaherty in a double-switch before the bottom of the sixth inning.
It’s been a big series for Freeman, who hit his seventh and eighth homers Saturday after cranking out a career-best five hits Thursday in a 5-for-5 performance that included a two-run homer in a series-opening win.
Both Freeman homers Thursday came against left-hander Jarlin Garcia – a first-pitch solo shot with two out in the opening inning and a two-run, full-count homer with two out in the fifth. The first-inning drive caromed off the second-deck façade above right field and the fifth-inning homer sailed over the center-field fence.
The two-run homer came on the fourth consecutive slider Garcia threw Freeman and it followed a two-out single from rookie Ronald Acuna, who’d been 1-for-11 in the series before the hit.
