ATLANTA — Ronald Acuña Jr.’s 100th career home run was enough to back the impressive start Drew Smyly constructed while helping the Braves claim a 1-0 win over the Cardinals in the second game of a doubleheader on Sunday night at Truist Park.
Smyly’s no-hit bid ended when Paul Goldschmidt recorded a two-out single in the sixth. Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies was shaded behind the second-base bag before he ranged to his left to field Goldshmidt’s grounder at the edge of the grass. Albies’ attempt to produce a defensive gem evaporated when his throw pulled Freddie Freeman off the first-base bag.
After bidding adieu to a potential seven-inning no-hitter, the Braves held on to record the narrow victory and claim their third win of this four-game series. Their only loss occurred in Sunday’s first game, when Adam Wainwright threw a three-hit shutout in a Cardinals victory.
Wainwright’s effort conjured memories of April 25, when the Braves totaled just one hit while being on the wrong end of consecutive shutouts by the D-backs’ Zac Gallen and Madison Bumgarner. But Acuña found a way to provide just enough offense for Atlanta to avoid yet another doubleheader sweep.
Acuña gave Smyly all he needed with his one-out homer in the third inning. The line-drive solo shot, which narrowly cleared the left-center-field wall, was the outfielder’s 19th homer of the season.
Acuña’s 100th homer comes in his 378th game. The only players to reach this milestone in fewer games were Ryan Howard (324), Gary Sánchez (355), Aaron Judge (371), Ralph Kiner (376) and Joey Gallo (377). It was also the fastest any player has gotten to both 100th homers and 75 stolen bases, by number of games.
