Guardians vs Braves Recap: Braves power surge 13-1

The Guardians visited the Braves on Sunday, April 12 at Truist Park in Atlanta. Cleveland wanted pitching to keep them close, and Tanner Bibee started for the Guardians. Atlanta came in with strong arms too, and Chris Sale took the hill for the Braves. The final score was Atlanta 13, Cleveland 1, so the Braves won by a large margin. Early innings showed Atlanta building a lead, and Cleveland managed one late run. The game unfolded quickly with big hits and several multi-run innings. This result left both teams with identical records of 9-6 after the game.

Atlanta struck early in the second inning with a three-run burst. After two outs, Mauricio Dubn doubled to center and Yastrzemski scored to make it 1-0. A few moments later, Josh Mateo singled and Dubn scored for 2-0. Ronald Acu1a Jr. then doubled, bringing Mateo home and stretching the lead to 3-0. Those hits came with two outs, so the Braves showed clutch hitting and pressure at the plate. Pitch speeds and exit velocities were strong on those plays, and Atlanta kept attacking after that inning. Cleveland could not match that early offense during the middle innings.

The games turning point came in the fourth and fifth innings. In the fourth, Smith hit a two-run homer to right and the Braves pushed the score to 5-0. During the fifth, Ozzie Albies singled home Olson, then Farmer doubled to score two more runs and make it 8-0. Later in the eighth, Atlanta added three more runs on a ground force and two doubles, finishing the scoring at 13-1. Cleveland scored once in the sixth when Hoskins homered, but it was too late. This win kept Atlanta at 9-6 while Cleveland also sat 9-6, and the Braves left no doubt in this game.