ATLANTA — The Braves, tied 3-3 with the Marlins in the seventh, mashed their way to another series win. Second baseman Ozzie Albies and first baseman Freddie Freeman homered, leading the Braves to a 5-3 win Sunday at Truist Park.
Albies put the Braves ahead with a towering shot off Marlins reliever Anthony Bass. It was Albies’ 28th homer, drawing him closer to his first 30-homer campaign. It was Albies’ first homer since Sept. 7, ending a four-game home-run drought on the heels of his homering in four consecutive contests.
An out later, Freeman hit his 30th home run on his 32nd birthday, sending a Bass slider into the left-field seats. The blast marked the third time Freeman has homered on his birthday. It was his second homer in September.
Braves lefty Max Fried had a 1.60 ERA over his last seven starts entering Sunday. He cruised through five innings, allowing one run on Jesus Sanchez’s mammoth 460-foot blast, which was the longest home run of the season for the Marlins. But Fried hit a wall in the sixth, when Miami scored two runs to reset the game at three.
Lewin Diaz smacked a lead-off triple to center in which the ball bounced off the wall and past center fielder Joc Pederson. Miguel Rojas’ singled scored Diaz. Fried made an error fielding Jazz Chisholm’s sacrifice bunt, which set up Sanchez’s game-tying single an out later.
Fried allowed three runs on four hits over his six innings, striking out seven and walking one.
Truist Park’s crowd was relatively lifeless before left fielder Eddie Rosario’s two-run homer put the Braves up 2-1 in the fourth. It was Rosario’s third home run in 14 games with the Braves, who acquired him July 30 from Cleveland while he was sidelined with an abdominal injury. Rosario has proven valuable veteran depth since returning.
Jacob Webb, Luke Jackson and Will Smith combined to notch three scoreless innings in relief to secure the Braves’ win.
The Braves took two of three from the Marlins. They won the season series 11-8 despite dropping five of their first six against Miami. It’s the 16th time in the last 18 years the Braves won double-digit games against the Marlins who, while trending upwards now, are usually among the National League East’s bottom feeders.
It hasn’t been easy, but the Braves started their homestand 4-2, taking series against the Nationals and Marlins. This is the softest portion of their schedule remaining, so it’s pivotal the team relinquish ground while facing inferior opponents.
The Braves are off Monday before beginning a 14-game stretch without an off day. They’ll host the Rockies in a three-game series starting Tuesday before beginning a three-city west coast rip next weekend.
