Harris belts grand slam in return from IL; Braves blow out Giants

SAN FRANCISCO -- Michael Harris II returned in grand fashion, and three days after enduring a demoralizing loss, the Braves finally seem to be heading in the right direction.

Harris blasted a majestic grand slam into McCovey Cove during a five-run first inning that propelled the Braves to a 13-2 win over the Giants on Wednesday night at Oracle Park. The center fielder’s first career slam came in his first plate appearance since June 15, when he was placed on the injured list with a strained left hamstring.

“It’s crazy too,” Harris said. “I told myself before the game, I think I saw somebody hit a grand slam [on the clubhouse television]. I had never hit one and I got it out of the way with my first AB [at-bat].”

Harris, Matt Olson, Austin Riley and Sean Murphy all homered as the Braves won their third straight since blowing a six-run, eighth-inning lead against the Rockies at Coors Field on Sunday. Atlanta remains two games in front of the Mets and 4 1/2 games in front of a trio of teams, including the Giants, in the battle for the National League’s third Wild Card spot.

But nothing comes easy in this game. Jorge Soler exited with left hamstring tightness after grounding out in the fourth. Soler will undergo a MRI exam on Thursday, but manager Brian Snitker is hopeful the slugger needs just a couple days of rest.

It's been a rough year for the Braves, who have seen Harris, Ronald Acuña Jr., Murphy and Spencer Strider each miss at least two months. The thought has been things would get better and the lineup would gain much needed length when Harris returned.

It didn’t take long to strengthen this belief. Harris fouled the first pitch he saw from Robbie Ray and then drilled the next one, a Statcast-projected 423 feet, toward a kayaker in McCovey Cove. It was just the second homer this year to land in the water beyond the right-field wall.

“It felt good,” Harris said. “Too bad I couldn’t get [the ball] back. The guy didn’t want to give it back. So, I guess I just got to try to do it again.”

Harris’ home run was the only ball the Braves put in play against Giants starter Robbie Ray, who hit the first two batters he faced and then issued three walks while recording just two outs.

“That’s a way to make your entrance,” Snitker said. “That was pretty good.”

Braves starter Grant Holmes surrendered a leadoff homer to Tyler Fitzgerald but kept the Giants scoreless from there until they pushed a run across in the seventh. He notched his first career win with the seven-inning effort and helped the relief corps get some much-needed rest.

Harris’ return upgrades the recently-suspect Braves’ outfield defense. But he also provides the lineup the power-speed tool it has lacked since he was injured a little more than two weeks after Acuña tore his left ACL.

“It’s just good to have him in there,” Snitker said. “He’s one of our guys. We missed him for two months. It’s just good to get him back out there, running around.”

Soler has positively impacted the lineup since being acquired from the Giants on July 29. He has homered four times in his past 21 at-bats. Olson has hit eight of his 21 homers within his past 67 at-bats. And Riley has hit four of his 19 homers in his past eight games.

Olson and Riley both still have a chance to record a fourth straight 30-homer season. In other words, the offense has rounded into form, just in time to benefit from Harris’ return.

“It’s all been really good to see,” Snitker said. “After a rough Sunday, we’ve done some really good things here the past few days.”