Braves Pull Away With Big Inning to Extend Winning Streak to Six

The Atlanta Braves picked up another series opening, beating the Washington Nationals, 9-4. What began as a back-and-forth game, they put up five runs in the sixth inning and two more in the ninth inning for good measure to put the game away. They picked up their sixth win in a row.

Six different members of the lineup drove in at least one run. Matt Olson led the way with three RBIs. Two came on a two-run home run in the top of the fourth inning, and the third came on a sacrifice fly in the top of the ninth inning to cap off scoring.

He hit a towering shot to right field in the top of the sixth inning that appeared to be his second home run of the game. However, the 6-foot-6 Jamed Wood was able to stick his arm up and catch it near the top of the wall with ease for the out. That sharp fly ball went 351 feet and came off the bat at 102 mph. It still was not enough.

Olson leads the Braves with six home runs, and his 19 RBIs are second to Drake Baldwin. He’s on pace for 42 home runs and 133 RBIs so far. Meanwhile, his .954 OPS leads the team and ranks among the league leaders.

Baldwin was right behind Olson in production on Monday night with two RBIs and picking up the only multi-hit performance of the night. With no outs and runners in scoring position in the top of the sixth, he doubled in Mike Yastrzemski and Ronald Acuña Jr. to give the Braves the lead and jumpstart the rally.

The reigning National League Rookie of the Year winner leads the team with a .313 batting average and .377 on-base percentage. His 23 runs and 21 RBIs don't just lead the team, but they lead all of baseball.

On the pitching side, Bryce Elder pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowed four runs (three earned) while striking out six.

The bullpen was nails for the Braves, combining for 2 1/3 scoreless innings to slam the door on the game. Aaron Bummer came in to finish the seventh inning, picking up the third out. Tyler Kinley struck out two in a scoreless frame, and Joel Payamps followed suit with another goose egg to slam the door on the game.

With the scoreless outing, Kinley lowered his ERA to 0.90. He joined Raisel Iglesias, Robert Suarez and Dylan Lee as members of the bullpen with more than one appearance who have an ERA below 1.00.

The effort to lock back down Kinley and Iglesias, and to pick up Suarez in free agency, is paying major dividends early.

During the game, outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. exited the game after being hit by a pitch on the left hand. His X-rays were negative, and he is day-to-day.

With the win, they now sit at 16-7 and maintain their five-run cushion in the National League East. Monday night's win improved their record within the division to 6-1 on the year.

The Braves look to pick up another win in Washington on Tuesday. Reynaldo López will be on the mound for a 6:45 p.m. first pitch.

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