Rookie Michael Harris II slapped a two-run triple to spark a four-run rally and send Atlanta to a 13-2 win over the visiting Oakland A’s and extend the Braves’ winning streak to seven games.
In the fifth inning, Harris pulled a curveball from starter Jared Koenig down the first base line, scoring Marcell Ozuna and Adam Duvall for a 3-2 lead, and he raced to third for his first career triple.
Austin Riley followed with a towering two-run homer to left field to cap the rally and helped send Oakland to its eight straight loss.
The Braves put the game away by scoring seven times in the seventh. Riley and Matt Olson delivered RBI singles before Ozzie Albies hit a three-run homer, his seventh. That ended a 40-game homerless streak, the longest of his career. Albies had not gone deep since April 23. Duvall added a two-run homer, his fourth.
Harris finished 2-for-4 with a double, a triple, two RBIs and two runs. Riley went 2-for-4 with three RBIs. Each Atlanta starter got at least one hit.
Atlanta has won eight straight against Oakland, a streak that began June 12, 2005. The Braves improved to 15-6 against left-handers this year.
The winning pitcher was Ian Anderson (5-3), who pitched six innings and gave up two runs on six hits and two walks with five strikeouts.
Koenig (0-1) worked four-plus innings and allowed four runs on five hits and two walks with three strikeouts in his major league debut. Oakland’s starting pitchers are 0-7 with a 5.34 ERA over the last 10 games.
Oakland scored two runs in the fourth on a wild pitch and Sean Murphy’s RBI single.
The Braves cut the deficit to 2-1 in the bottom of the fourth on a sacrifice fly by Albies.
William Contreras put Atlanta ahead 6-2 in the sixth with a solo homer, his eighth.
Oakland’s losing streak is one shy of its season-long nine (April 29-May 8) and is the first time the team has had two losing streaks of eight-plus games since 2005. The A’s have been outscored 49-14 during the current losing streak.
–Field Level Media
