PHOENIX – After a gut-wrenching loss in the second game of the series, the Braves avoided a sweep with a 6-0 win over the Diamondbacks on Wednesday at Chase Field.
Here are five observations on Atlanta (24-27):
1. After Tuesday’s ugly loss, Braves manager Brian Snitker expressed a sentiment that looked ahead: Usually, he said, a team follows up one of its worst performances with one of its best.
The Braves did just that.
They didn’t do much well in Tuesday’s game, and they did almost everything well on Wednesday.
“It’s being aware and turning the page,” Snitker said after the win. “They realize this is a long season. However good or bad it is, you’ve got to put it behind you and start up a new day. These guys, over the years, have shown resiliency and the ability to do that.”
Kyle Wright pitched six shutout frames after his offense gave him a lead before he stepped on the mound. The lineup added on in the seventh inning, which decreased the chances of blowing another game. The team played crisp defense and ran the bases well.
2. While Wright tossed six shutout innings, he showcased his ability to remain strong amid trouble. This is just one area in which he’s greatly improved from previous years.
Wright allowed three hits and walked five batters, but stranded seven Diamondbacks. Arizona put a runner on base in five of Wright’s six innings. He had multiple runners on base in four of those frames, and two on at the same time in three consecutive innings.
In the third, Wright stranded two runners by getting a strikeout. He did the same in the fourth when he induced a groundout. And in the fifth, he rolled a double play to escape a jam.
He’s done a terrific job of slowing down the game and remaining poised this season.
“I think it’s just going back to (how) you’re always one pitch away,” Wright said. “I feel confident that I can go get a strikeout when I need it, or I can get a ground ball when I need it. I feel like that’s a big part of it, is just knowing that I have the confidence to get a guy out on my own, or get a ground ball or get out of a jam.”
3. The Braves did not deserve to win Tuesday’s game, but they might have if they had capitalized in the eighth inning, when they had runners on the corners with no outs and didn’t score.
They made sure this game had no chance of ending the same way.
In the top of the seventh inning, Austin Riley launched a 438-foot, three-run home run to give the Braves a five-run lead. The ball got out in a hurry.
“It’s huge, because we’ve been burned by not adding on in games,” Snitker said. “Two things: It’s good to add on, and it’s good that you maybe stay away from some guys in the bullpen that you don’t want to use.”
Riley, who has homered 13 times this season, has a 10-game hitting streak. He has hit three homers in the last four games and six since May 18.
During the Braves’ recent series in Miami, assistant hitting coach Bobby Magallanes, who was not there but had looked at video, noticed Riley’s posture needed adjusting. Now, Riley’s shoulders are more square to the plate instead of toward second base, which has helped him.
4. Michael Harris II has had an eventful first week in the big leagues.
In this win, he drove in a run when he laced a 105-mph double off the center-field wall against Madison Bumgarner in the second inning. In the eighth, Harris charged a sinking line drive in center field and made an incredible diving catch, which is just one of a few great defensive plays he’s made since the Braves called him up to the majors.
Harris has tallied RBIs in consecutive games.
“I’ve thought he’s been incredible,” Wright said.
5. At this point, it’s difficult to come up with anything new to say about Wright. This has been the same story for pretty much the entire season – which is a positive.
He has not appeared to be a fluke.
This seems real.
Wright has been one of MLB’s breakout stars this season. He continues proving himself in each start, and has yet to experience a true setback this year.
His ERA is 2.41.
Stat to know
10 1/2 - After losing two of three in Phoenix, the Braves are 10 1/2 games behind the Mets (35-17) in the NL East.
Quotable
“Last night sucked, so that was a good win today.”-Riley on the Braves getting the sour taste out of their mouths
Up next
The Braves travel to Colorado for four games versus the Rockies. Atlanta righty Ian Anderson will face Rockies lefty Austin Gomber in Thursday’s series opener, which begins at 8:40 p.m. ET.
