Matt Olson hit a three-run homer and a two-run double in the first two innings against Bailey Ober before the game was interrupted by a thunderstorm. His performance helped Max Fried and the Atlanta Braves secure a 10-6 win over the struggling Minnesota Twins on Monday night.
Fried (8-7) faced an 86-minute rain delay and still managed to get his first win since June 23, pitching five innings and allowing just one earned run.
“We know that he always wants the ball,” Olson said. “I personally thought that someone was going to tell him no, but I thought it was cool.”
Braves manager Brian Snitker gave Fried the unusual choice to return after the rain delay.
“‘Whatever you feel like,’” Snitker told him. “He said, ‘I want to go. I don’t care how long we wait.’”
Travis d’Arnaud hit a two-run homer, and Marcell Ozuna scored two runs and drove in two more for the Braves. They ended Ober’s streak of 11 straight quality starts by scoring four runs before he got an out.
Whit Merrifield, who went 5 for 5, started the game with a single. Three batters later, Ober (12-6) threw an 0-2 cutter that Olson hit 423 feet into the second deck above right-center field for his 23rd homer.
Though Olson is not on pace to match his 54-home run season from last year, he has been performing well recently with 17 RBIs, 12 runs, five homers, and five doubles in his last 16 games.
After severe weather warnings began during the first inning, the Braves managed to score five more runs before the rain started. The game was delayed as napkins and wrappers blew from the upper deck, and the grounds crew quickly covered the infield with a tarp.
“I didn’t know the rain was coming that early. I don’t think anyone did. It was hot, and I was sweating a lot, but I’ve had games like that before and I was able to pitch through it,” Ober said. “No excuses.”
