TAMPA — Braves supervisor Brian Snitker was thrilled to speak about Sean Murphy’s two-homer sport, Michael Harris II’s game-winning homer and principally something that didn’t should do together with his offense’s unimaginable struggles with runners in scoring place.
“It’s enormous,” Snitker stated. “I informed [bench coach Walt Weiss] within the dugout, ‘I’m operating out of issues to say, actually.’ So, that is good. I’d slightly discuss these things and the way we hung in there and got here again.”
The Braves tallied only one hit in 11 at-bats with runners in scoring place throughout their 5-4 comeback win over the Rays on Saturday afternoon at George M. Steinbrenner Area. That one hit simply occurred to be Harris’ two-run, ninth-inning shot off Cole Sulser, the final of Atlanta’s season-high 4 house runs.
“A day like this could change every part,” second baseman Ozzie Albies stated. “It may well deliver extra positivity and extra optimistic vitality for us to come back again tomorrow and go for one more win.”
Was this the spark Atlanta wanted to get on a roll, or a minimum of win consecutive video games for the primary time this season? That’s to be decided. However by overcoming the two-run deficits they carried into the seventh and eighth innings, the Braves prevented shedding every of their first 9 highway video games of any season throughout the trendy period (since 1900).
Atlanta is simply 4-10, however the membership has gained three of its previous 5 and this newest victory a minimum of quickly altered the temper. It allowed the Braves to keep away from specializing in what number of alternatives their hitters have squandered this yr, particularly by way of Saturday’s first six innings.
The Braves have been 0-for-6 with runners in scoring place by way of the primary two innings and Albies grounded into an inning-ending double play when he swung at a 3-0 pitch beneath the zone within the sixth. However the rally allowed a smiling Albies to face beside his locker and reply questions on how he and Murphy tied the sport with back-to-back homers off Hunter Bigge within the eighth.
“Comeback wins are one of the best,” Albies stated.
Possibly the tide is popping for Atlanta’s offense. Austin Riley has 5 straight multi-hit video games, the primary Braves participant to do that since Chris Johnson in 2013. Albies has homered in consecutive video games. And Murphy has homered 3 times within the 15 at-bats he has collected since lacking the season’s first 9 video games with a cracked left rib.
Is it the glasses he just lately began carrying to appropriate astigmatism?
“I do know they assist,” Murphy stated. “It’s not like evening and day. I believe it’s just a bit enchancment.”
Just a little enchancment may go a good distance for the Braves, who’re anticipated to welcome Spencer Strider again to their rotation for Tuesday or Wednesday’s sport in Toronto. His return may result in both AJ Smith-Shawver or Bryce Elder being despatched to Triple-A Gwinnett.
Smith-Shawver helped his trigger as he retired seven of the eight batters he confronted after issuing two straight walks, together with one with the bases loaded, within the third. The 22-year-old registered 5 of his seven strikeouts throughout this span and confirmed his nice potential.
On the identical time, Smith-Shawver’s youth confirmed within the first inning, when he prolonged his two-out struggles by permitting two straight hits, together with Junior Caminero’s solo homer. It might have been three straight had Harris not made an unimaginable catch lengthy earlier than he drilled his go-ahead homer.
“I don’t know how he [caught] that,” Snitker stated. “I informed him, ‘We’ll be watching that for twenty-four hours on MLB Community and all of that.’”
Harris raced to his proper, made a slight adjustment to Christopher Morel’s lengthy fly, threw his glove hand [right hand] up and someway made the catch together with his again to the infield as he reached the warning observe.
“Good factor I practiced these on [EA Sports’] MVP [Baseball],” Harris stated. “So, I used to be capable of do it fairly naturally.”
Nothing has appeared to come back naturally, or a minimum of straightforward, for the Braves most of this yr. However possibly this energy barrage will a minimum of permit them to flee the frustration that has adopted them all through the season’s first two weeks.
“Proper now, we’re struggling and combating to get wins, so each considered one of them is sweet,” Snitker stated.
