Braves beat Marlins, win NL East
The Atlanta Braves beat the Miami Marlins 11-1 Tuesday night for their 33rd win in 55 games. Through all the turmoil of a COVID-impacted season, and a revolving door with a decimated starting rotation, the Braves have won their third straight National League East title.
Yes, the Braves need to win a postseason series. It's been 19 years since that happened, so the expectations are high and there is more work for them to do. But this is the 20th division title in Atlanta's history, and the accomplishment should not be diminished.
From the first day of summer camp, when manager Brian Snitker had to announce first baseman Freddie Freeman, reliever Will Smith and two others had COVID-19, this has been a huge challenge. This team has followed protocols and has done everything possible to get through the most difficult season they will ever have.
Tuesday the Braves actually got a great start from Bryse Wilson. You read that right. Bryse Wilson pitched really well. He pitched five scoreless innings and gave up three hits, walked one and struck out seven.
It's 2020, folks. Crazy things happen.
The offense went to work. Marcell Ozuna hit two home runs, his 16th and 17th of the season. Ozuna now leads the NL in home runs. Ozzie Albies (6), Dansby Swanson (8) and Freddie Freeman (12) also had home runs.
Atlanta's bullpen did well, again. Josh Tomlin gave up a run in two innings of work, and then A.J. Minter and Jacob Webb both had scoreless innings to end the game.
The Braves (33-22) move ahead of the Cubs (32-23) as the second-best team in the National League.
For more Braves coverage, listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays at 3:00 pm on SportsRadio 93-1 WXKO TheSuperStations.com. Email Bill at thebillshanksshow@yahoo.com and you can Tweet him @billshanks.