Yankees Sweep Braves in Tight Pitching Duel
The Yankees ended the series today with a 4–2 victory over the Braves at Truist Park. With six innings thrown, one run on five hits, no walks, and four strikeouts, Marcus Stroman delivered his best game of the season and helped stabilize a bullpen that had been overworked early in the series. Aaron Judge's home run in the opening game, his 36th of the season, gave New York a commanding lead before Paul Goldschmidt added an RBI single and Jazz Chisholm Jr. doubled home another run in the eighth. Despite allowing Ronald Acuña Jr. to hit a home run in the ninth, Devin Williams recorded his fourteenth save, but Matt Olson responded for Atlanta with a solo shot.
The Yankees hit Braves starter Grant Holmes early in the first inning. Judge put New York ahead 1-0 with a solo home run, his 36th of the season and his first at Truist Park. Then, Goldschmidt gave the Yankees a fast 2-0 lead with a two-out RBI single to left-center. There was no score in the second inning. Both starters locked in; Stroman retired Atlanta in order, while Holmes suppressed New York's top of the order, with Judge and Cody Bellinger grounding out. The Braves threatened in the third inning. Nick Allen reached base after Michael Harris II singled, but Stroman forced a crucial double play from Olson to end the inning before any runs were scored.
A pitchers' duel between the two teams continued in the fourth and fifth innings. Holmes and Stroman held the hitters in check, and until the sixth inning, neither team was able to get a baserunner into scoring position. There was the first significant change in momentum in the sixth inning. When Jorbit Vivas was hit by Holmes with one out, the Yankees forced a run across, enabling Goldschmidt to score from third base to increase New York's advantage to 3-0. Atlanta quickly rallied, cutting the lead to 3-1 with a huge 442-foot solo home run by Olson into right field on the roof of the Chop House. The late-inning interactions that ensued were firmly established by that sequence of events.
The Yankees added to their lead in the eighth inning. Judge was scored, and the score was 4-1 when Chisholm Jr. hit a clutch double to left-center. New York would require no more insult than that. Both sides were silent at the bat in the eighth inning. The score was at 4-1 going into the final inning because the Yankees' bullpen held firm, and Atlanta's batters were unable to produce a significant threat. To make it 4–2, Braves slugger Acuña Jr. hit a single bomb to center field in the ninth, his 13th of the season. However, Williams, the Yankees’ closer, soon settled in, retiring the next three batters to preserve the series sweep and final score.
In today's defeat, the Braves lacked reliable bullpen support and timely hitting. Even though Olson and Acuña Jr. each hit solo home runs to demonstrate their strength, they were unable to take advantage of scoring opportunities when runners were on base, particularly in the early and middle innings. Stroman's effective six-inning performance largely restrained their attack, and aside from the two home runs, they failed to record an extra-base hit. Starting pitcher Holmes allowed runs early on, and a hit-by-pitch in the sixth inning gave New York a crucial insurance run. In a closely contested game, Atlanta's inability to generate runs with runners in scoring position and their deficiency of shutdown relief pitching turned out to be the difference.
Next up, the Braves start their three-game series tomorrow night against the San Francisco Giants. This series should be an exciting one. This may come down to situational hitting and pitching matchups because both offenses are mediocre. Atlanta needs to recover from getting swept in this Yankees series by taking advantage of matchup advantages, especially at home.
