ATLANTA -- Eddie Rosario's 398-ft home run in the eighth inning gave the Braves a 5-4 victory over the Reds and another comeback victory on Wednesday night at Truist Park. Rosario smashed Reds reliever Buck Farmer’s 93.8-mph fastball, giving the Braves a series sweep.
Sean Murphy hit a 408-ft. walk-off home run in extra innings on Monday and the Braves rallied from three runs down on Tuesday.
“It was a high fastball,” Rosario said through an interpreter. “I faced him a lot when he was with Detroit, and I was in Minnesota and I knew that he likes to throw high heat on a 2-2 fastball, so I was kind of ready for it.”
Rosario is slashing .229/.270/.371 (8-for-35). He hasn’t produced as much as he would have liked, but his teammates appreciate his work ethic and knew his moment would come.
“The whole team sees the work that he puts in all the time, and we all know the quality of player that he is,” Orlando Arcia said through an interpreter. “We've seen him barrel the ball and the effort that he puts in is always 100%.”
The Braves fell behind by two runs in the first inning but found themselves back in the game thanks to timely at-bats. Ronald Acuña Jr. hit a two-run single to tie the game in the second inning, Murphy hit an RBI double to left field to even the score in the third and Acuña hit another RBI single in the seventh to set the stage for Rosario.
“They keep giving themselves chances, and it's good,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “This series showed, they got behind [and] just kind of stayed the course.”
Acuña finished this series with seven hits, four RBIs, two walks and one stolen base, which came in the second inning. That steal gave him six on the season, which tied him with the Orioles’ Jorge Mateo and the Guardians’ Myles Straw for the most in the Majors.
The Braves have been able to overcome many deficits in a matter of an inning, like in their comeback victory against the Padres on April 6, or chipping away a little at a time like they did on Tuesday. Atlanta’s sluggers -- Matt Olson (.627 slugging percentage), Acuña (.537) and Austin Riley (.511) -- have made consistent contributions, while unsung heroes -- like Arcia -- have showcased what they bring to this loaded roster.
“The chemistry that we have within this team is really what gives the guys the strength to go out there, perform and compete,” Arcia said through an interpreter. “That's the key to our success.”
Arcia exited Wednesday’s game in the second inning with a left wrist injury after getting hit by Reds pitcher Hunter Greene’s 97.6 mph fastball. Snitker, third-base coach Ron Washington and head athletic trainer George Poulis checked on the shortstop, who was grimacing in pain, and was replaced by Ehire Adrianza in the third inning. X-rays came back negative.
The shortstop doesn’t expect to go on the injured list, but if he does, the team can lean on Adrianza or call up Vaughn Grissom and Braden Shewmake, who Arcia battled with for the shortstop position. Arcia has been solid this season, batting .333/.400/.511 (15-for-45), and Snitker says his play has been huge for Atlanta.
“He's just playing so well for us,” Snitker said. “[He’s a] big reason why we're where we're at right now.”