ATLANTA — First place still belongs to the Braves. A weekend sweep does not.
According to the Associated Press recap on ESPN, the Atlanta Braves beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-3 on Sunday, Aug. 16, at Truist Park, avoiding a three-game sweep after dropping the first two games of the set.
Olson’s seventh-inning answer
Ildemaro Vargas homered in the top of the seventh off Didier Fuentes (5-1) to tie the game at 2, the AP account says. In the bottom half, with two outs and runners aboard, Matt Olson hit a 3-0 pitch from Brandyn Garcia over the center-field wall.
The AP and MLB.com both put the drive at 437 feet. It was Olson’s 36th home run of the season. MLB.com adds that Olson also owns an MLB-leading 66 extra-base hits and that the blast completed a 30-double / 30-homer season for the third time in his career (and second with Atlanta).
Ronald Acuña Jr. had put Atlanta ahead 2-1 with a run-scoring double in the fifth before striking out against Garcia with runners at first and third in the seventh. Olson’s homer immediately followed.
Elder settles in
Bryce Elder allowed four hits over six innings, including a leadoff fourth-inning homer by Gabriel Moreno that tied the game at 1, per ESPN. The start was a bounce-back after a seven-run, 10-hit loss to the Mets in his previous outing, the same recap notes.
Raisel Iglesias allowed a run in the ninth and still recorded his 25th save.
Former Brave Michael Soroka worked 5 2/3 innings against Atlanta, allowing six hits and two runs. Taylor Clarke (2-3) took the loss.
Standings and injury note
ESPN’s package listed Atlanta at 74-50 after the win, still alone atop the NL East. Arizona fell to 66-59. The AP notes San Diego remains the only club to sweep a three-game set from Atlanta this season.
Nolan Arenado, coming off a two-homer game Saturday, left Sunday’s contest with left trunk discomfort after running out a grounder in the fourth and was replaced by Vargas. The AP says he was scheduled for an MRI and described the pain as unlike anything he had felt before.
What’s next
Per the recap’s “up next” notes, Atlanta opens a three-game series in Minnesota on Monday with Martín Pérez (8-6, 2.96) opposite the Twins’ Bailey Ober (7-4, 4.64). Arizona heads to Boston.
Primary sources: ESPN game recap (AP); MLB.com Braves report; Atlanta News First AP package.