ATLANTA -- Matt Olson seemed to provide a perfect assessment of where the Braves stood after the season’s first week, when he said, “You don’t go play golf and double-bogey the first hole and mail it in.”
It felt like the Braves carded a much-needed birdie as they celebrated their home opener with a 10-0 win over the Marlins on Friday night at Truist Park. Olson and Marcell Ozuna hit back-to-back homers to back a dominant Spencer Schwellenbach and reinvigorate an Atlanta fan base that was also looking forward to moving on from a rough first week.
“You always feel that’s the kind of game you need to get you off the mat,” manager Brian Snitker said. “What Schwellenbach did, and to see the offense finally come alive, was really nice after the last week.”
The offense that had slumbered over the past week against the Padres and Dodgers tallied 16 hits and went 7-for-17 with runners in scoring position. That’s one more hit than the Braves had notched while going 6-for-49 with RISP in the previous seven games.
Maybe it was the Rice Krispie treats Olson’s mother made for the team. Maybe it was just being back in Atlanta for the first time since Spring Training began in February. Or maybe, it was a determination not to waste Schwellenbach’s gem.
There were plenty of contributors, but nobody was more impressive than Schwellenbach, who seems primed to put himself in the Cy Young Award talk this year. The 24-year-old hurler recorded 10 strikeouts and allowed just two hits over a career-high eight innings. He hasn’t allowed a run in 14 innings this year.
“We all know that he’s one of the top arms in the game,” Olson said. “It was just smooth sailing for him.”
The Braves spent the past couple of days hearing how no team has ever reached the playoffs after an 0-7 start. But with this first win, Atlanta can become the fourth team to earn a postseason berth after a 1-7 start. The only teams to do so were the 2011 Rays, 1995 Reds and 1974 Pirates.
It’s safe to say the Braves are feeling far different than they did on Wednesday, when they suffered a 6-5 loss to the Dodgers and then boarded their cross country charter that landed at approximately 6 a.m. The punches, which included losing both Jurickson Profar (80-game suspension) and Reynaldo López (shoulder surgery), kept coming last week.
But it felt like some of the frustration was released during Friday’s three-run third inning, which was highlighted by Ozuna’s two-run double off Marlins starter Max Meyer. Ozuna capped his three-hit game with a single that fueled a five-run eighth. The veteran designated hitter has constructed an impressive .559 on-base percentage thus far.
Ozuna tallied his first homer of the season when a replay review showed his seventh inning drive hit off Dane Myers’ glove and rolled along the top of the outfield wall before landing in left fielder Griffin Conine’s glove. Olson followed with a no-doubter into the right-center-field seats.
“Today was amazing,” Ozuna said echoing the thoughts of his teammates who were also thrilled to taste the season’s first win.
As bad as the first week was, there was an extra sense of excitement surrounding this home opener. Austin Riley stood at his locker on Wednesday night and talked about how embarrassed he was by his offensive performance (3-for-27 with 11 strikeouts) during the road trip.
But Riley woke up early Friday morning, grabbed his coffee and began looking forward to the goosebumps he would feel during his first plate appearance in front of the home fans.
Riley felt the love of the fans when he tallied RBI singles in the third and eighth innings. But he and the rest of his teammates got a sense of the fan’s loyalty during the pregame parade held outside the stadium before batting practice.
“Coming home is nice,” Schwellenbach said. “We’ve been on the road for two months or whatever. To come home and sleep in our own beds and have 40-some thousand fans behind us, we’re going to get this thing going.”
This was a special night for Schwellenbach and top prospect Drake Baldwin, who played his first career home game. The talented catcher guided his good friend through eight strong innings and also notched his first career RBI with an eighth-inning single.
“Seeing how many people have your back and how many people are rooting for you, makes it easier to go out there and compete. It just gives us that little bit extra.”
Kinda like a birdie.