The Braves broke this one open early and never let up. Ronald Acuna's first-inning-turned-third-inning power set the tone, and by the time Atlanta finished piling on runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings, the Marlins were buried under an 11-3 final at Truist Park.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MIA | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 3 |
| ATL | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 3 | X | 11 | 14 | 0 |
Acuna went 2-for-5 with two home runs and three RBIs, carrying the Atlanta offense for much of the night. He gave the Braves the lead for good with a two-run homer to left-center in the third inning, then added a solo shot to right in the eighth as the rout continued. Michael Harris also factored heavily, going 3-for-5 with a triple and two RBIs, while Mauricio Dubon collected four hits and two RBIs of his own. Matt Olson chipped in with a homer and three runs scored.
Acuna's homer proved to be the game's decisive blow. With the score tied 0-0 in the third, he drove one 390 feet to left-center to score Drake Baldwin and put Atlanta ahead for good. The Braves piled on from there: Olson homered to center in the sixth, Lane Thomas doubled home Harris, Austin Riley added a sacrifice fly, and a fielder's-choice grounder by Baldwin brought home another run as Miami's defense unraveled, with a throwing error by second baseman Edwards opening the door further. Atlanta tacked on three more runs in the eighth, including Acuna's second homer, an RBI single from Harris, and a run-scoring double from Dubon.
Miami starter Janson Junk lasted three innings, allowing 2 runs on 5 hits with a walk and a strikeout before turning things over to a bullpen that surrendered 9 runs across 5.0 innings. The Marlins did manage a two-run seventh, with Javier Sanoja singling home Xavier Edwards and Griffin Conine driving in Leo Jimenez, and Sanoja added an RBI double in the ninth to bring in Kyle Stowers. It wasn't nearly enough against an Atlanta lineup that piled up 14 hits. Martin Perez started for the Braves and was sharp, working three scoreless innings with just one hit allowed, a walk and three strikeouts.
The win extended Atlanta's winning streak to eight games, improving the Braves to 70-45 and holding their spot atop the division. Miami fell to 58-58, its third straight loss. Acuna sits at 197 career home runs, 3 shy of the 200 milestone, and at 486 career RBIs, 14 away from 500.