The Braves were on the verge of a five-game skid Thursday, but they’ll enter Saturday on a two-game win streak.
Despite an erratic outing from spot starter Kyle Wright, the Braves did enough to defeat the Cubs, 5-2, on Friday in Chicago. It was the Braves’ first game against a non-division opponent and opened a three-game series.
Unfortunately for the Braves, the win wasn’t without loss. Outfielder Ender Inciarte injured his hamstring and left during the fourth inning. He was replaced by veteran Guillermo Heredia. Then second baseman Ozzie Albies was hit with a pitch just under his knee and left in the top of the ninth inning. The Braves already were dealing with several injuries to key contributors.
Wright was thrown into action because lefty Drew Smyly was placed on the injured list Friday morning with left forearm inflammation. Wright never had command of his fastball, hitting four Cubs in just 4 2/3 innings. He held their struggling offense to two runs, which helped the Braves win, but Wright didn’t do anything that would make the team want to give him an extended look.
The numbers: Two runs on three hits, five strikeouts, two walks and four hit batters. It was a strange, confusing outing for Wright. The same adjectives describe his major league career thus far.
Ronald Acuna continued his tear with a two-RBI single and a run scored. The run was particularly impressive. Marcell Ozuna hit a sharp grounder to Cubs shortstop Javy Baez, who gathered the ball and seemed surprised that Acuna, who started at second base, had rounded third and was dashing home. It was another instance of the Braves being rewarded for their aggressive base running.
Acuna has scored in eight consecutive games for the Braves. He’s scored 19 runs in 14 games overall.
It was a decent day overall for the Braves’ offense, which had nine hits. Ozuna had his second three-hit game since Tuesday, when manager Brian Snitker tweaked the lineup.
The Braves and Cubs play the second game of their series Saturday afternoon. Huascar Ynoa will try to build off his excellent start opposite Cubs right-hander Trevor Williams.
