ATLANTA _ The Astros were in town on the Fourth of July, the Braves were surging after a weekend sweep at Oakland, and there was added buzz from the announcement earlier Tuesday that Freddie Freeman was coming off disabled list earlier than expected and would be in the lineup at third base.
The largest crowd to date at SunTrust Park turned out to see what the Braves could do with rookie sensation Sean Newcomb on the mound and the lineup bolstered with the addition of Freeman.
And the Braves, after winning 11 of 15 games to improve to 40-41 before Tuesday, had a chance to get to .500 for the first time (past the opening weeks of a season) since they were 42-42 on July 7, 2015. This was going to be a big night.
But then the game happened. And the Astros did what they do, pounding Newcomb for five extra-base hits and seven runs in 3 1/3 innings and rolling to a 16-4 rout in the opener of a two-game series before a sellout crowd of 41,456.
Sixteen runs (all earned) matched the season high allowed by Braves pitchers in a 16-5 home loss to Mets on May 3, and the Astros' 19 hits were one shy of the season-high 20 the Braves allowed twice, in that loss to Mets and in a 14-4 loss to Washington on April 19 also at SunTrust Park.
Freeman singled in the first inning in his first plate appearance since fracturing is left wrist May 17, but Braves fans didn't have much else to get excited about until the Braves got three runs in the seventh inning after trailing 12-0.
It was an odd vibe because nearly everyone stayed for the entire game, sitting quietly while waiting for the postgame July 4 fireworks show. Josh Reddick started the fireworks, so to speak, with a towering ninth-inning grand slam off Braves reliever Jason Motte.
Newcomb, who allowed a total of 18 hits and five runs (four earned) in 24 1/3 innings over his first four starts, gave up 10 hits and seven runs and recorded just 10 outs against the Astros. It was the first time he went fewer than six innings in the majors and first time fewer than four innings all year including the minors.
The Braves had won 16 of their past 25 before Tuesday, but they only faced two teams with winning records during that stretch, the Nationals (six games) and Brewers (three games). And neither Washington nor Milwaukee is as deep and formidable as this Houston team.
The Astros have won 19 of 22 road games to improve their majors-best road record to 30-9 and their overall mark to 57-27, best in the majors and the best start in franchise history. They are 30 games over .500 for the first time since they were 90-60 on Sept. 24, 2001.
Each of the past three times the Braves came home after winning a road series, they laid an egg in the first game back at SunTrust.
After winning two of three at Cincinnati, the Braves lost 11-4 to the Phillies in a June 5 homestand opener with Bartolo Colon pitching. After winning two of three at Washington June 12-14, Atlanta had a day off before losing 5-0 to the Marlins in a homestand opener with Newcomb pitching (six innings, three runs).
This time the Braves were coming off a three-game sweep at Oakland and a day off Monday.
The Astros are the last opponent any team can afford to give extra outs, seeing that Houston began Tuesday leading the majors in batting average (.283), on-base percentage (.349), slugging percentage (.487), doubles (172) and home runs (133), all of which they increased with a double-digit scoring output against the Braves. The extra out came in the third inning, after George Springer led off the inning with a homer that pushed the lead to 2-0.
Speedy Jose Altuve was up next and hit a ground ball to second base that Brandon Phillips fielded well back on the dirt instead of charging, and by the time he fielded it, a quick and strong throw to first base was too late to get Altuve. So when Reddick followed with a ground-out it was only the first out of the inning, and Newcomb gave up a single and hit Marwin Gonzalez to load the bases.
Ex-Brave Brian McCann lined out for the second out, but Yuli Gurriel followed with a three-run double that broke the game open, giving the Astros a 5-0 lead.
Astros starter Brad Peacock (6-1) had not allowed more than four runs in any of his seven starts since moving from the bullpen in late May and had allowed just three runs and eight hits in 15 1/3 innings over his past three starts before Tuesday, when he dominated the Braves after being staked to the early lead.
Newcomb (1-3) left the game with bases loaded in the fourth inning and the Braves trailing 6-0, and two more runs were added to his ledger when reliever Luke Jackson gave up a single and got McCann to ground into an inning-ending double play, the second out on the play coming on a throw to the plate.
Newcomb had a 1.86 ERA in his past 12 starts before Tuesday including eight Triple-A starts and his first four big-league outings, and he gave up half as many runs in 3 1/3 innings against the Astros as he allowed in 67 2/3 innings over those previous 12 starts.
Springer's home run was his 25th, making him the first Astros player with more than 24 before the All-Star break since Lance Berkman had 29 in 2002. And Springer is Houston's leadoff hitter. The Yankees' Aaron Judge (29) was the only major leaguer with more than 24 homers before Tuesday.
Five of 10 hits off Newcomb went for extra bases and his ERA jumped from 1.48 to 3.58.
