On Monday at Chase Field, the Braves took a loss and turned it into a victory. They stunned the Diamondbacks and their home crowd with Sean Murphy’s game-tying home run in the ninth inning that kept the Braves alive.
The Braves managed to win 5-4 in 11 innings against Arizona, thanks to their last strike in the ninth inning. They thus ended a streak of 28 consecutive losses when their opponent scored at least four runs.
“It was awesome,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “It was a team effort. We were kind of dead in the weeds out there, and (Murphy) helped us out a little bit.”
Five observations on this incredible victory:
1. On Monday, the Braves promoted Eddie Rosario to the major league team after three days in Triple-A. Around 8:50 p.m. local time, the game rested on his bat. He stepped in to face Arizona closer Paul Sewald.
On the second pitch of the battle, Rosario missed a high four-seam fastball. Then he hit another four-seam ball to the top of the zone.
So on the fourth pitch, Sewald threw a fastball over the zone and away. The ball was so high it could have been adjacent to Rosario’s collarbone.
And somehow he hit a single to right field.
“I’m not surprised. I’ve done it before,” Rosario said of the throw. “It’s not a surprise to me.”
The next batter, Murphy, hit a two-run shot to right-center field, giving Sewald his third straight save.
The Braves fans who traveled to Phoenix were delirious. The team was, too. They had another chance. The loss seemed tough, but they had hope.
“I mean, pretty calm,” Murphy said of his time in the batter’s box at that point. “You just try to make your best swing. Keep the line moving. Obviously, I hit the home run. But (my mindset) was just to get the next guy up and see what happens. But it went the way I wanted it to and I left the ballpark.”
The Braves scored a run in the 10th inning and Arizona tied it. Then, in the 11th, Atlanta scored a run.
With the runner on second base, Joe Jimenez earned his second save.
It all started with Rosario’s crazy swing.
“It was unbelievable,” Murphy said. “We know that because of Eddie. Eddie can hit just about anything, and he knows it. He’s not afraid to go up there and hit it. He’s dangerous no matter where you throw the ball.”
From the locker room, Bryce Elder, who started the game, watched the ninth inning. He saw the location of the pitch hit by Rosario.
And what would he think if he were Sewald?
“I’d probably be confused,” Elder said. “Especially with his fastball and the way it plays, I’d probably be really confused. But Eddie made a good swing, so we’ll take it.”
2. To know baseball is to understand that the most important moment in the game doesn’t necessarily happen in the ninth inning or later. The unsung heroes often arrive long before the game is over.
A Braves hero: Grant Holmes.
He entered the game with the bases loaded in the sixth inning and issued a walk that allowed a run — a run credited to Elder, not Holmes — and then did not allow another. Holmes did not allow an earned run in three innings.
The Braves trailed by two runs as Holmes recorded nine outs in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings. He kept the deficit to two runs.
“He just gets on the field and he knows his role and he knows he’s there to throw strikes and win innings for us,” Murphy said. “And when he gets on the field, he does exactly that. He keeps his foot on the pedal and puts pressure on the other offense just to get the bats moving. Man, he was awesome tonight. All credit to him.”
Think of it this way: If Holmes hadn’t pitched well, the Braves would have faced a steeper climb in the late innings. Rosario and Murphy had the hits that will be remembered, but Holmes kept Atlanta within striking distance.
Holmes has allowed two earned runs in the first 15 2/3 innings of his career. He is the first Braves reliever to allow two or fewer runs in at least 15 2/3 innings over the first seven games of his career since … Taylor Phillips in 1956.
Then you had relief pitcher Raisel Iglesias, who threw two innings for the first time since 2021, when he played for the Angels. He threw just 11 pitches in the ninth inning and wanted to come back in the 10th. Snitker said he would have used Iglesias only if the Braves scored in the 10th, which they did on Ozzie Albies’ sacrifice bunt. Iglesias allowed the inherited runner to score in extra time, but did his job keeping the game tied.
“That means he wants to win, and that’s the kind of guy I want with the ball at the end of the game,” Murphy said of Iglesias, who pitched two innings.
In the 11th, with a runner on second, Jimenez ended the game.
“It’s huge,” Jimenez said. “I think when you’re in these situations, especially now in overtime, you have to do your best to hold the runner, especially if we have the advantage. It’s crazy, but awesome.”
3. Former Brave Joc Pederson was standing at third base as the D-backs continued to threaten in the sixth inning. Holmes tried to get out.
With one out, Gabriel Moreno threw a ball behind first base into foul territory. Olson sprinted toward the ball, which headed deeper into foul territory down the right-field line.
With his back to the ball, he slid, reached out his glove and caught the ball, and in the same motion, slid to his knees and threw a pitch toward home plate. Somehow, he managed to get the ball to Murphy at home plate, and Pederson ran toward third base.
“It was spectacular,” Murphy said. “I thought, ‘Oh man, I want to drop that one.’ But he had the wherewithal to slide and make that throw, and then he had enough power to hold the runner. It was the play of the game. It saved a run.”
He had to catch the ball. And then he had to find a way to make a decent throw.
It was amazing.
“I don’t know how he did that,” Snitker said. “And just to get up and throw it toward the house.”
4. The Braves had a one-run lead in the bottom of the sixth inning. They left the game with a two-run deficit.
In the frame, the Braves committed an error and allowed three straight walks – two by Elder, one by Holmes.
And it looked like this inning would be too much for the bats to overcome.
After three batters in the game, Austin Riley gave Yilber Diaz, a 23-year-old Arizona player making his MLB debut, a welcome-to-the-major-league moment. Riley hit a 97-mph fastball inside and dropped it to the pitch beyond the big center-field wall.
It became the Braves’ only run against Diaz. The right-hander held Atlanta to that one run through six innings. He managed to get out of a few stalemates.
The Braves have been unable to convert key opportunities this season. And on Monday, they went 0 for 5 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base.
Then came the ninth, when they tied the score against Sewald and erased everything that had come before Murphy’s hit.
5. So far, the Braves have struggled to gain momentum. They win a series of games, then revert to their old ways. For fans, it’s confusing and frustrating.
This kind of victory – a comeback away from home against a good team – can be the start of something new.
“I think it’s a good thing,” Elder said. “I think the tough wins are the ones that get you going. Looking back over the last couple of weeks, I realize those are the wins that can get us going.”
The Braves are known for their offense that surprises opponents late in games if it hasn’t already knocked them out beforehand. But so far, the Braves have been pretty quiet — by their standards, at least — in the final stages of games.
Not this time.
That night, they hit hard and signed an emblematic victory. It could be the most beautiful victory of the season.
What could this bring them in the future?
“I don’t know. I think we’ll find out,” Snitker said. “It’s a great win. It’s a tough, hard-earned win.”
Statistics to know
2-33 – Before Monday, the Braves were 2-33 when trailing after eight innings.
Quotable
“Yeah, I would say so. Hopefully it will lead to some extra momentum going forward. I think we all felt pretty good tonight.” – Murphy on how a win like this gives a team extra momentum
Following
We have a hell of a game coming up: On Tuesday, Sale will face Diamondbacks ace Zac Gallen. First pitch is at 9:40 p.m.