TAMPA -- Braves manager Brian Snitker was thrilled to talk about Sean Murphy¡¯s two-homer game, Michael Harris II¡¯s game-winning homer and basically anything that didn¡¯t have to do with his offense¡¯s incredible struggles with runners in scoring position.
¡°It¡¯s huge,¡± Snitker said. ¡°I told [bench coach Walt Weiss] in the dugout, ¡®I¡¯m running out of things to say, honestly.¡¯ So, this is good. I¡¯d rather talk about this stuff and how we hung in there and came back.¡±
The Braves tallied just one hit in 11 at-bats with runners in scoring position during their 5-4 comeback win over the Rays on Saturday afternoon at George M. Steinbrenner Field. That one hit just happened to be Harris¡¯ two-run, ninth-inning shot off Cole Sulser, the last of Atlanta¡¯s season-high four home runs.
¡°A day like this can change everything,¡± second baseman Ozzie Albies said. ¡°It can bring more positivity and more positive energy for us to come back tomorrow and go for another win.¡±
Was this the spark Atlanta needed to get on a roll, or at least win consecutive games for the first time this season? That¡¯s to be determined. But by overcoming the two-run deficits they carried into the seventh and eighth innings, the Braves avoided losing each of their first nine road games of any season during the modern era (since 1900).
Atlanta is just 4-10, but the club has won three of its past five and this latest victory at least temporarily altered the mood. It allowed the Braves to avoid focusing on how many opportunities their hitters have squandered this year, especially through Saturday¡¯s first six innings.
The Braves were 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position through the first two innings and Albies grounded into an inning-ending double play when he swung at a 3-0 pitch below the zone in the sixth. But the rally allowed a smiling Albies to stand beside his locker and answer questions about how he and Murphy tied the game with back-to-back homers off Hunter Bigge in the eighth.
¡°Comeback wins are the best,¡± Albies said.
Maybe the tide is turning for Atlanta¡¯s offense. Austin Riley has five straight multi-hit games, the first Braves player to do this since Chris Johnson in 2013. Albies has homered in consecutive games. And Murphy has homered three times in the 15 at-bats he has collected since missing the season¡¯s first nine games with a cracked left rib.
Is it the glasses he recently started wearing to correct astigmatism?
¡°I know they help,¡± Murphy said. ¡°It¡¯s not like night and day. I think it¡¯s just a little improvement.¡±
A little improvement could go a long way for the Braves, who are expected to welcome Spencer Strider back to their rotation for Tuesday or Wednesday¡¯s game in Toronto. His return could lead to either AJ Smith-Shawver or Bryce Elder being sent to Triple-A Gwinnett.
Smith-Shawver helped his cause as he retired seven of the eight batters he faced after issuing two straight walks, including one with the bases loaded, in the third. The 22-year-old registered five of his seven strikeouts during this span and showed his great potential.
At the same time, Smith-Shawver¡¯s youth showed in the first inning, when he extended his two-out struggles by allowing two straight hits, including Junior Caminero¡¯s solo homer. It would have been three straight had Harris not made an incredible catch long before he drilled his go-ahead homer.
¡°I have no idea how he [caught] that,¡± Snitker said. ¡°I told him, 'We¡¯ll be watching that for 24 hours on MLB Network and all of that.'¡±
Harris raced to his right, made a slight adjustment to Christopher Morel¡¯s long fly, threw his glove hand [right hand] up and somehow made the catch with his back to the infield as he reached the warning track.
¡°Good thing I practiced those on [EA Sports¡¯] MVP [Baseball],¡± Harris said. ¡°So, I was able to do it pretty naturally.¡±
Nothing has seemed to come naturally, or at least easy, for the Braves most of this year. But maybe this power barrage will at least allow them to escape the frustration that has followed them throughout the season¡¯s first two weeks.
¡°Right now, we¡¯re struggling and fighting to get wins, so every one of them is good,¡± Snitker said.