<img alt="Toronto Blue Jays v Atlanta Braves" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/KUxJAXg-DsKnw8gUmrVUsPZGPZ4=/0x0:7469x4979/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73569529/2169894189.0.jpg">
Photo by Kevin D. Liles./Atlanta Braves/Getty Images
The Braves once again leaned on their pitching staff in order to take home another victory on this homestand. Max Fried looked more like the version of Max Fried who has become such a beloved figure in Braves Country over the course of his career. Fried put on a maximum performance as his strong performance on the mound and one good inning of offense from the lineup was enough to help push the Atlanta Braves to a 3-1 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Blue Jays had the first scoring chance of the game, which is when Ernie Clement made it to second base with one out in the second inning after leading off the frame with a single. Fortunately for the home team, Max Fried was able to get a pair of ground balls to snuff out the scoring chance right then and there. It’s a good thing that he was able to do so, since the Braves were able to have themselves a very nice inning once it was their turn to hit.
Each of the first three batters for the Braves reached base to start the second, which culminated with Jarred Kelenic hitting an RBI single to put the Braves on the board. Kelenic stole second while Arcia struck out in order to make it into scoring position and then Gio Urshela cashed him in by poking one into the opposite field to make it 2-0 Braves. Michael Harris II then came up with one out and hit a slow grounder to second. The ground ball was slow enough to where Money Mike was able to easily beat the throw to first on the double play attempt while Jarred Kelenic scored to make it 3-0. The Braves eventually loaded up the bases with two out but Matt Olson flew out to end the scoring at three runs for Atlanta.
This is the part where I’d love to report that Max Fried pitched a shutdown inning in order to capitalize on those runs. However, Nathan Lukes led off the third with a single and then George Springer joined him on the basepaths after Orlando Arcia made a meal out of fielding a grounder. Eventually the Blue Jays had runners on the corners with Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who is one of the last players you want to see with a runner in scoring position at this particular moment. Vladito proceeded to ground into a productive out that scored Lukes from third and I’d venture to say that everybody in Atlanta’s dugout was fine with how that turned out — especially once Alejandro Kirk grounded out to end the inning.
From that point forward, both starting pitchers settled into a groove. Kevin Gausman proceeded to sit down the next ten batters that he saw up until the sixth inning, which is when Jorge Soler broke that streak with a leadoff double. Soler was awarded third base after a ball got stuck in Alejandro Kirk’s equipment but Orlando Arcia struck out to end the inning and also end Gausman’s night on a high note with his fifth strikeout of the night.
Still, Gausman was clearly second-best to Max Fried on this night. We did indeed get one of those Maximum Fried-type performances from him tonight — Fried went seven innings, struck out eight batters, gave up five hits and just one walk and one run allowed and that one run wasn’t even earned, either. This was what the Braves needed and he also ended his night on a high note as he stranded George Springer at third base to end the inning and wipe out another scoring chance for the Blue Jays.
With the Braves up 3-1 as Max Fried left the game, it was time for the much-ballyhooed Atlanta bullpen to do what they usually do in this type of situation. Joe Jiménez faced off against Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Alejandro Kirk and Ernie Clement and dismissed each of them in order to end the eighth inning. The Braves didn’t add on any more runs, so that meant that it was time for Raisel Iglesias to enter the game. At first, it seemed like Iglesias was going to do his usual routine of three-up and three-down as he struck out Will Wagner and Spencer Horwitz to start off the ninth inning.
However, things got a little interesting once Pinch-hitter Joey Loperfido came up to the plate. Loperfido hit a liner to right that Eli White attempted to turn into a spectacular catch. He didn’t make the play and Loperfido ended up on second with a double. Things got really interesting once Nathan Lukes hit the first pitch he saw into right field for a single that put runners on the corners and brought the potential go-ahead run to the plate in the form of George Springer. Any type of crisis was averted, however, once Iglesias struck out Springer on four pitches in order to pick up yet another save and give the Braves another big victory here in September.
This was a big game for the Braves to have and it was especially big considering that the Mets were able to lock down a 6-4 win in extras against the Reds. While it’s certainly annoying to see the Mets continue to stay hot (they’ve won seven in a row and eight of their last 10 games), all the Braves can do is simply take care of business on their end and they did just that with tonight’s win. They rode a familiar formula of strong starting pitching, just enough offense and dominant relief pitching in order to close it out. We’ll do it all again tomorrow night at 7:20 p.m. ET as Spencer Scwhellenbach looks to keep the good times rolling as far as the rotation is concerned.
<img alt="Toronto Blue Jays v Atlanta Braves" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/KUxJAXg-DsKnw8gUmrVUsPZGPZ4=/0x0:7469x4979/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73569529/2169894189.0.jpg">
Photo by Kevin D. Liles./Atlanta Braves/Getty Images
The Braves once again leaned on their pitching staff in order to take home another victory on this homestand. Max Fried looked more like the version of Max Fried who has become such a beloved figure in Braves Country over the course of his career. Fried put on a maximum performance as his strong performance on the mound and one good inning of offense from the lineup was enough to help push the Atlanta Braves to a 3-1 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Blue Jays had the first scoring chance of the game, which is when Ernie Clement made it to second base with one out in the second inning after leading off the frame with a single. Fortunately for the home team, Max Fried was able to get a pair of ground balls to snuff out the scoring chance right then and there. It’s a good thing that he was able to do so, since the Braves were able to have themselves a very nice inning once it was their turn to hit.
Each of the first three batters for the Braves reached base to start the second, which culminated with Jarred Kelenic hitting an RBI single to put the Braves on the board. Kelenic stole second while Arcia struck out in order to make it into scoring position and then Gio Urshela cashed him in by poking one into the opposite field to make it 2-0 Braves. Michael Harris II then came up with one out and hit a slow grounder to second. The ground ball was slow enough to where Money Mike was able to easily beat the throw to first on the double play attempt while Jarred Kelenic scored to make it 3-0. The Braves eventually loaded up the bases with two out but Matt Olson flew out to end the scoring at three runs for Atlanta.
This is the part where I’d love to report that Max Fried pitched a shutdown inning in order to capitalize on those runs. However, Nathan Lukes led off the third with a single and then George Springer joined him on the basepaths after Orlando Arcia made a meal out of fielding a grounder. Eventually the Blue Jays had runners on the corners with Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who is one of the last players you want to see with a runner in scoring position at this particular moment. Vladito proceeded to ground into a productive out that scored Lukes from third and I’d venture to say that everybody in Atlanta’s dugout was fine with how that turned out — especially once Alejandro Kirk grounded out to end the inning.
From that point forward, both starting pitchers settled into a groove. Kevin Gausman proceeded to sit down the next ten batters that he saw up until the sixth inning, which is when Jorge Soler broke that streak with a leadoff double. Soler was awarded third base after a ball got stuck in Alejandro Kirk’s equipment but Orlando Arcia struck out to end the inning and also end Gausman’s night on a high note with his fifth strikeout of the night.
Still, Gausman was clearly second-best to Max Fried on this night. We did indeed get one of those Maximum Fried-type performances from him tonight — Fried went seven innings, struck out eight batters, gave up five hits and just one walk and one run allowed and that one run wasn’t even earned, either. This was what the Braves needed and he also ended his night on a high note as he stranded George Springer at third base to end the inning and wipe out another scoring chance for the Blue Jays.
With the Braves up 3-1 as Max Fried left the game, it was time for the much-ballyhooed Atlanta bullpen to do what they usually do in this type of situation. Joe Jiménez faced off against Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Alejandro Kirk and Ernie Clement and dismissed each of them in order to end the eighth inning. The Braves didn’t add on any more runs, so that meant that it was time for Raisel Iglesias to enter the game. At first, it seemed like Iglesias was going to do his usual routine of three-up and three-down as he struck out Will Wagner and Spencer Horwitz to start off the ninth inning.
However, things got a little interesting once Pinch-hitter Joey Loperfido came up to the plate. Loperfido hit a liner to right that Eli White attempted to turn into a spectacular catch. He didn’t make the play and Loperfido ended up on second with a double. Things got really interesting once Nathan Lukes hit the first pitch he saw into right field for a single that put runners on the corners and brought the potential go-ahead run to the plate in the form of George Springer. Any type of crisis was averted, however, once Iglesias struck out Springer on four pitches in order to pick up yet another save and give the Braves another big victory here in September.
This was a big game for the Braves to have and it was especially big considering that the Mets were able to lock down a 6-4 win in extras against the Reds. While it’s certainly annoying to see the Mets continue to stay hot (they’ve won seven in a row and eight of their last 10 games), all the Braves can do is simply take care of business on their end and they did just that with tonight’s win. They rode a familiar formula of strong starting pitching, just enough offense and dominant relief pitching in order to close it out. We’ll do it all again tomorrow night at 7:20 p.m. ET as Spencer Scwhellenbach looks to keep the good times rolling as far as the rotation is concerned.
Link to original article
