Injury fill-in Alvarez scores winning run and Braves hit 3 HRs to edge Cardinals

Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] 

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Sean Murphy, Ronald Acuña Jr. and Marcell Ozuna homered and the Atlanta Braves rallied against St. Louis’ two top relievers to beat the Cardinals 7-6 on Saturday.

Nacho Alvarez Jr., filling in for injured third baseman Austin Riley, singled twice and scored the winning run on Jurickson Profar’s ninth-inning groundout against closer Ryan Helsley (3-1).

Murphy, who hit the two longest home runs of this season at Busch Stadium on Friday night, put the Braves ahead 6-5 with a high drive that cleared the glove of José Fermín as he leaped at the left-field wall in the eighth. The three-run shot was Murphy’s 16th homer of the season and the first allowed by reliever Phil Maton in 37 appearances this season.

St. Louis tied it when pinch-runner Garrett Hampson scored on a wild pitch by Daysbel Hernández (4-1) in the eighth.

Raisel Iglesias pitched a perfect ninth for his 11th save.

Yohel Pozo and Nolan Gorman homered, and Brendan Donovan had two hits, including an RBI single in the eighth, for the Cardinals.

St. Louis, which had been shut out in each of Erick Fedde’s previous three starts, broke through with three runs against Atlanta opener Aaron Bummer in the second inning to draw even after early home runs Acuña and Ozuna.

Pozo led off the bottom of the second with a double into the left-field corner and scored on Thomas Saggese’s RBI single. Gorman followed with a 423-foot blast to tie it at 3. Pozo added a go-ahead solo homer in the sixth.

Acuña, who pulled himself out of the home run derby in Atlanta next Tuesday, hit a 379-foot drive into the Braves’ bullpen in the first.

Ozuna clobbered a 422-foot solo shot in the second, and Alvarez made it 3-0 with a single for his first big-league RBI in nine career games.

Key moment

After the St. Louis bullpen had retired seven in a row, Profar doubled to lead off the eighth and Acuña drew a one-out walk to set the table for Murphy’s 372-foot drive.

Key stat

Murphy has seven home runs in his last 11 games. He had hit just two in his prior 33 games.

Up next

RHP Sonny Gray (9-3, 3.51 ERA), whose last turn in the rotation was moved up a day to allow him to squeeze in an extra start before the All-Star break takes the mound Sunday for St. Louis. Atlanta had not announced a starter.

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB

Related Posts

Braves predicted to replace Brian Snitker with Mets bench coach tied to GM Alex Anthopoulos | Sporting News

This would be an interesting move to say the least, but the candidate in hand is very familiar with Alex Anthopoulos.

Red Sox Floated As Trade Landing Spot For Cy Young Winner In Dream Deal

The Boston Red Sox need to make some massive moves in the coming months in order to continue progressing toward a World Series. The Red Sox have talent a lot of

Yankees Veteran Outfielder Elects Free Agency

The New York Yankees have lost some depth in their outfield as the offseason has come to an early start after the club fell in the ALDS to the Toronto Blue Jays

Where To Watch Chicago Cubs vs Milwaukee Brewers (Game 5): Game Time, Pitchers, TV Channels & Stream

The Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers have gone the distance in a thrilling best-of-five NLDS. After the Cubs forced Game 5 with a comeback win at Wrigley Fiel

PHILLY SHOCKWAVE: Phillies Linked to $80M MVP and World Series Champ, A Move That Could Reshape the Entire Lineup, Questions Swirl About Castellanos’ Future, And This Offseason Might Be Bigger Than Anyone Realizes…ll

The Phillies are going to have to add this offseason, especially if they lose some of their main guys.

BLUE OCTOBER BUZZ: Dodgers’ NLCS Roster Prediction Sends Fans Into Frenzy, Clayton Kershaw Officially Back in the Mix, A Surprise Arm Joins the Staff at the Last Minute, And This Move Could Flip the Entire Series…ll

With the NLCS right around the corner, the Los Angeles Dodgers could trot out a roster with a few surprises on it.