Sale and Ozuna propel Braves to a 6-2 victory over Guardians in clash of MLB’s top teams.
In Atlanta, Chris Sale shrugged off an early home run and Marcell Ozuna continued his impressive performance with two additional RBIs, guiding the Braves to a 6-2 victory over the Cleveland Guardians in the opening game of a series featuring the top two teams in MLB.
The reigning NL East champions, the Braves, secured their 10th win in 11 games, advancing to an 18-6 record and edging ahead of the AL-leading Guardians (18-8).
Sale (3-1) allowed a home run to the first batter, Steven Kwan, whose 389-foot hit along the right-field line ricocheted in the Chop House restaurant. However, Sale quickly regained control, conceding only one more hit across seven innings in his third consecutive strong start. He walked one batter, struck out six, and delivered 67 of his 95 pitches for strikes.
Ozuna erased Cleveland’s narrow lead in the fourth inning with a double to left field off Logan Allen (3-1), bringing home Austin Riley and Matt Olson, who both reached base without a hit – Riley via a walk and Olson hit by a pitch.
Ozuna’s tally of 31 RBIs leads the majors this season, marking the highest total ever by a Braves player before May. His feat surpasses the previous records held by Dale Murphy (29 in 1985) and Hall of Famer Chipper Jones (29 in 1998).
Michael Harris II followed with a shallow hit to center field that drove in Ozuna, with Ozuna executing a headfirst slide for the run.
In the fifth inning, Olson added another run with a single, contributing to Allen’s departure from the mound after being charged with four runs in 4 2/3 innings. Orlando Arcia sealed the Braves’ victory with a home run in the eighth inning off Pedro Avila.
