Arcia went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and a walk in a 4-1 win against the Mets on Saturday.
Arcia tagged prized Mets rookie pitcher Christian Scott for a two-run blast in the third inning to give Atlanta an early lead. It was Arcia's second homer over his past three games after we went deep just twice over his first 33 contests of the campaign. The shortstop slugged a career-best 17 long balls last season.
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Braves' Max Fried: Fires seven hitless frames
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Fried (3-1) earned the win over the Mets on Saturday, allowing three walks while striking out five batters over seven scoreless and hitless innings.
Fried threw 109 pitches during his seven frames, so manager Brian Snitker didn't allow him to push any further for an individual no-hitter. Atlanta's bullpen carried the no-no into the ninth inning before J.D. Martinez ended the combined bid with a two-out solo homer off Raisel Iglesias. Though he didn't etch his name in the record books, Fried bounced back very nicely after giving up four runs over seven frames and picking up his first loss in his previous outing. He's now notched four quality starts on the campaign.
Acuna went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Friday's win over the Mets.
He took Jose Quintana deep in the third inning, part of a four-run frame for Atlanta. Acuna may be turning things around at the plate -- after posting a 26.5 percent strikeout rate in April, he's fanned just 19.4 percent of the time through the first seven games in May. He's also batting .310 (9-for-29) to begin the month with two of his three homers on the season.
Iglesias allowed a run on a hit and a walk in the ninth inning Friday to earn a save against the Mets.
Iglesias coughed up an RBI single to Pete Alonso with two outs in the ninth but was able to close out the 4-2 victory. The right-hander has converted 10 of his 12 save chances this year while posting a 10:4 K:BB through 15.1 innings. Friday was the first time he'd allowed an earned run since April 24, and he owns a strong 2.25 ERA.
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Braves' Charlie Morton: Fans seven in win
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Morton (3-0) yielded a run on three hits and a walk over seven frames Friday, striking out seven and earning a win over the Mets.
Morton rolled through six easy innings before Francisco Lindor broke up with the shutout with a solo shot in the seventh. Since allowing 10 total runs in two starts April 8 and 14, Morton has turned in four straight quality starts. During that stretch, his season ERA has dropped from 5.29 to 3.14 through 43 innings. Morton is currently in line for a home matchup against the Cubs next week.
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Braves' Matt Olson: Finally snaps slump
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Olson went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer in Friday's win over the Mets.
Olson hit Atlanta's third and final homer during the third inning and it proved to be the game-winning blast. It was his first long ball since April 7, snapping an uncharacteristic 26-game skid. During that extended drought, he posted a .508 OPS with 30 strikeouts. On the year, Olson is slashing .202/.311/.372 with 13 extra-base hits and 18 RBI through 35 contests.
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Braves' Pierce Johnson: Throwing off mound
Rotowire
Johnson (elbow) began throwing off a mound Friday, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.
Just six days after landing on the injured list, Johnson has already been given the go-ahead to throw bullpen sessions. He will presumably throw a few more before progressing to facing hitters, but the 33-year-old righty could be on track to return to Atlanta's bullpen when first eligible May 19.
Atlanta acquired Short from the Red Sox on Thursday in exchange for cash considerations.
He will slide right into the role fellow utility infielder Luis Guillorme vacated after being traded to the Angels earlier Thursday. Short, who will turn 29 later this month, is a career .169/.262/.299 hitter over parts of four major-league seasons and has managed just one base hit through 19 plate appearances in 2024 between his time with the Mets and Red Sox.
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Braves' Orlando Arcia: Homer, double in win
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Arcia went 2-for-4 with a double and a solo homer in Wednesday's win over Boston.
The 29-year-old took Nick Pivetta deep in his first at-bat, going back-to-back with Marcell Ozuna as Atlanta jumped out to an early 4-0 lead. Arcia then followed up another Ozuna home run with a double in the third but was left stranded. It marked the shortstop's 11th multi-hit performance of the season, though his previous one came back on April 26. He's also hit safely in four of his last five contests.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Mashes two homers in win
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Ozuna went 2-for-3 with two home runs and four RBI in Wednesday's win over the Red Sox.
Ozuna jumped on a hanging four-seamer from Nick Pivetta in the bottom of the first and launched it into the stands in right field for a three-run shot to put Atlanta on the board. The veteran slugger followed up with another long ball in the third, this time a solo shot on the first pitch he saw, giving him a league-leading 12 home runs on the season. Ozuna also leads the major leagues in RBI with 38 and has now driven in at least one run in three straight games.
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Braves' Chris Sale: Dominates old team
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Sale (5-1) earned the win over the Red Sox on Wednesday, hurling six shutout innings while allowing six hits and one walk. He struck out 10.
Sale allowed at least one hit in each of his first five innings of work but was consistently able to work his way through it without sustaining any damage. He logged just one 1-2-3 inning, which came in the sixth, while fanning a season-high 10 batters on the night. The veteran lefty has now logged quality starts in three of his last four outings and hasn't produced fewer than six strikeouts in any of his seven starts this season. He's also won each of his last four starts.
Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said Wednesday that Murphy (oblique) has progressed to hitting in the batting cage, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.
Murphy's recovery from a Grade 1 left oblique strain has inched along at a snail's pace, but he's finally making noteworthy progress. Given that he's already missed nearly six weeks of action, he will no doubt require a handful of minor-league rehab games before returning from the 10-day injured list.
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Braves' Jarred Kelenic: Launches first homer of 2024
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Kelenic went 2-for-2 with a two-run home run in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Red Sox.
His third-inning shot off Kutter Crawford got Atlanta on the board, and gave Kelenic his first long ball of the season. Despite the lack of power, the 24-year-old has generally been hitting well in his strong-side platoon role, slashing .280/.333/.373 in 81 plate appearances. Only one of those PAs has come against a southpaw, but with Adam Duvall scuffling so far (.220/.310/.380 in 58 PAs), Kelenic might get more opportunities against same-handed pitching if he heats up.
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Braves' Raisel Iglesias: Nabs ninth save
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Iglesias struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Tuesday to record his ninth save of the season in a 4-2 win over the Red Sox.
The right-hander topped out at 97.1 mph as he bounced back from a blown save in his last appearance Friday. Iglesias hasn't been as dominant as usual to begin the season, managing a 10:3 K:BB through 14.1 innings, but his 1.88 ERA and 0.98 WHIP have been stellar. With his velocity finally getting back to normal as the weather warms up, more strikeouts could soon follow.
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Braves' Reynaldo Lopez: Battles control in no-decision
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Lopez came away with a no-decision in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Red Sox, allowing two runs (one earned) on six hits and four walks over 5.1 innings. He struck out five.
The four free passes were a season high for Lopez, who tossed 54 of 91 pitches for strikes before exiting. The right-hander has failed to last six innings in either of his last two outings after beginning the season with four straight quality starts, but he still sports a 1.53 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 36:14 K:BB through 35.1 innings. He'll look to tighten things up in his next start, which lines up to come at home early next week against the Cubs.
