The Atlanta Braves were victorious in the final game of their road trip by defeating the Colorado Rockies by a score of 9-2.
The Atlanta Braves went into Sunday looking to end a tough road trip with a win as they sent Charlie Morton to the mound against Colorado hurler, Ryan Feltner, who was making his major league debut.
When a pitcher is making his major league debut, many times that pitcher will have a distinct advantage his first time through the lineup because none of the hitters have seen him before. And for the most part that was the case on Sunday as well.
Feltner’s only misstep the first time though the Braves order was his first pitch of the game.
Ozzie Albies drove that pitch out to right field and the Braves had a 1-0 lead after one inning.
Feltner would not be so lucky the second time through the order, as he ran into trouble in the top of the third.
Charlie Morton singled to start the third inning. After retiring Ozzie Albies, Feltner gave up a single to Jorge Soler and then walked Freddie Freeman, loading the bases.
Austin Riley brought Morton home with a sacrifice fly and then Adam Duvall blasted a three-run home run into left-center field, extending the Braves lead to 5-0.
Travis d’Arnaud followed Duvall’s home run with a solo shot of his own and that would be the end of the line for young Mr. Feltner, on the wrong end of a 6-0 score.
Even pitching in Coors Field, six runs would be more than enough for Charlie Morton on Sunday.
Morton scattered two hits and two walks and gave up two runs in seven innings of work and the Braves rolled to victory without issue.
After a string of closely contested games, the Atlanta Braves beat the Colorado Rockies 9-2 on Sunday.
The road trip didn’t go as planned for the Braves.
There is nothing wrong with splitting a four-game set at Coors Field against the Rockies. The Rockies are 21 games over .500 at home and the altitude gives the Rockies a true home-field advantage.
But the three-game sweep the Braves suffered at the hands of the Dodgers really hurt, losing those three games by a combined four runs.
While the Braves proved they can play with the Dodgers being able to play with them isn’t the goal. Atlanta had an opportunity to send a loud and clear message to the Dodgers in this series but came up short.
But at the end of the day, it was just a regular-season series. And if the Braves are going to achieve their ultimate goal, they will most likely run back into those same Dodgers at a later date, with the stakes much higher.
The Atlanta Braves head home with a two-game lead in the division.
The good news is the Braves come home off of their most challenging road trip of the season with a two-game lead in the division.
And the schedule is about to tilt back into their favor.
Atlanta will have a nine-game homestand against the Marlins, Nationals, and Rockies (who are a much different team on the road). The next set of games for the Phillies includes the Brewers, Rockies (in Denver), and then the Cubs.
So the Braves will have an excellent chance to push their divisional lead back up to a more comfortable number over the next 10 days.
As we head towards the stretch run it is very likely the that final two series of the season will be the deciding factor in who wins the NL East, as the Braves will host the Mets and the Phillies in the final six regular-season games of 2021.
Although it may sound cliche, the road to the postseason in the NL East in 2021 will most likely figuratively and literally run through Atlanta.