Matt Olson hit two of Atlanta’s six home runs, and Chris Sale earned his major league-leading 18th win as the Braves defeated the Cincinnati Reds 15-3 on Thursday.
The Braves became the first team in major league history to hit four three-run homers in a single game, according to Elias. They remain two games behind the last NL wild-card spot.
Along with his career-high win total, Sale (18-3) also leads the majors in ERA at 2.38 and strikeouts with 225.
“I felt good. I was able to get through it,” said Sale, who expects to make two more starts and has a chance to win 20 games. “This was a little bit of a grind, but when the offense goes off like that, it takes a little bit off what I need to do.”
Sale pitched five innings, allowing two runs and five hits, with two walks and six strikeouts. This marked the 18th straight game in which he allowed two runs or fewer.
“I could tell he was beat (tired),” said Braves manager Brian Snitker. “I just think it was hot. It’s an early game. The way he competed to get through that, especially in that last inning, he’s different. He has 18 wins for a reason.”
Olson hit his 27th home run, and his second of the series, leading off the second inning. Ramon Laureano added a three-run homer in the third inning, his ninth, off rookie Julian Aguiar.
“I like to hit here. It’s just the park, a smaller park,” Olson said. “It has a short right-field fence. A couple balls get out here that aren’t good enough in other places. It’s fun as a hitter. Hopefully, this is a nice little spark.”
Marcell Ozuna doubled in a run in the fifth inning after Aguiar hit Michael Harris II and Jorge Soler to start the inning. Olson then greeted Yosver Zuleta with his second home run of the game. This was his fourth multi-homer game this season and the 25th of his career.
Harris hit the Braves’ sixth home run with two runners on in the ninth inning against Brandon Leibrandt.
The Braves bounced back from a loss on Monday night to win the last two games of the series against the Reds, who had previously won 4-2.
