ATLANTA -- The playoffs don’t start for another two weeks, but the Braves and Phillies have created a thrilling postseason atmosphere with each of their battles over the past week, especially this most recent one.
Drake Baldwin’s RBI double with two outs in the 11th gave the Braves a spirited 6-5 win over the Phillies on Friday night at Truist Park. Ha-Seong Kim delivered a game-tying single off Brooks Raley the previous at-bat, and then he scored from first on Baldwin’s game-winner.
Baldwin’s punctuating double increased the Braves’ (87-61) lead to five games ahead of the second-place Phillies (82-66) in the National League East. Both teams will have 12 games remaining after they conclude their season series on Sunday.
The Braves tied the game with a run in the ninth and the two teams both tallied a run in the 10th. Luis Arraez’s single off Didier Fuentes gave the Phillies a brief lead in the 11th.
Mike Yastrzemski sparked Atlanta’s ninth-inning rally with a one-out single. He was replaced by pinch-runner DaShawn Kiersey Jr., who scored from first base when center fielder Derek Hill bobbled Sean Murphy’s game-tying single.
Matt Olson gave the Braves an early lead with a two-out solo shot in the first inning off Aaron Nola. Atlanta stranded two runners in both of the next two innings, and didn’t score again until Austin Riley began the bottom of the seventh with a homer off Nola.
Chris Sale struck out six and allowed three earned runs and three hits over seven innings. The veteran lefty retired 20 of the 26 batters he faced. But four of the six batters to reach against him did so in consecutive fashion with two outs in the second inning.