The Atlanta Braves continued their strong second-half surge Tuesday night, using timely power and another outstanding pitching performance to defeat the Miami Marlins 4-2 at Truist Park. Home runs by Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley, combined with six scoreless innings from Grant Holmes, lifted Atlanta to its sixth consecutive victory.
The win improved the Braves impressive home record to 10-2 since the All-Star break, while the Marlins saw their recent momentum slowed after entering the contest having won six of their previous seven games.
Atlanta struck first in the second inning when Albies wasted no time against Marlins starter Ryan Gusto. On the very first pitch he saw, Albies launched a solo home run to right field, his 19th of the season, giving the Braves an early 1-0 advantage.
Holmes made that lead stand throughout his outing. The right-hander delivered six shutout innings, allowing five hits and one walk while striking out Marlins hitters and escaping trouble despite an error committed by Albies. Holmes improved to 7-4 on the season while lowering his earned run average to an impressive 3.67.
Miami had opportunities to break through but couldn’t capitalize against Holmes or the Atlanta bullpen. In the seventh inning, Dylan Dodd entered with a runner aboard and quickly extinguished the threat by inducing a fly out followed by a ground-ball double play to preserve the shutout.
The Braves added valuable insurance later in the seventh. After Matt Olson continued his productive evening finishing 2-for-3 while also being hit by a pitch Austin Riley delivered the game’s biggest swing. Riley crushed a towering 433-foot, two-run home run to left-center field off reliever John King, extending Atlanta’s lead to 4-0.
Ryan Gusto turned in one of his best outings despite suffering the loss. The Marlins right-hander pitched a season-high six innings, allowing only Albies’ solo homer while striking out five. Gusto fell to 0-3 on the year after keeping Miami within striking distance for much of the night.
The Marlins finally mounted a rally in the ninth against Braves closer Raisel Iglesias, who surrendered two runs to make things interesting. With runners on first and second and two outs, Miami attempted an aggressive steal to bring the tying run into scoring position.
However, Braves rookie catcher Drake Baldwin ended the comeback attempt by firing a strike to third base, where Jakob Marsee was caught stealing to end the game and secure Atlanta’s 4-2 victory.
The Braves will look to continue their winning streak in Wednesday’s second game of the three-game series. Atlanta will send right-hander Bryce Elder (7-6, 3.84 ERA) to the mound, while Miami counters with talented right-hander Eury Pérez (5-8, 3.44 ERA).
