The game was decided in the first four innings. Atlanta scored early and often, building an insurmountable lead that carried them to a 9-1 victory over Colorado at Coors Field on Friday night.
Drake Baldwin carried the offense with a 3-for-4 performance that included four RBIs. Baldwin homered to left in the first inning, scoring Acuña Jr. for a 2-0 lead. He added an RBI single in the second and capped his night with a two-run double in the fourth. Baldwin is hitting .312 with 8 home runs and 29 RBIs this season.
The Braves broke the game open in the fourth inning with three runs. White reached on a bunt single to score Riley, Baldwin's double brought home Mateo, and Albies hit a sacrifice fly to score White. Riley added a two-run homer in the fifth, his 438-foot blast to left center scoring Harris II and extending the lead to 8-1.
Chris Sale dominated on the mound, allowing just one run on three hits over seven innings while striking out 11. Sale carried a 2.14 ERA and improved to 6-1 with the victory. Chase Dollander took the loss for Colorado, allowing six runs on eight hits in 5.1 innings.
Sale reached 400 career games in this start. Atlanta improved to 22-10 despite snapping a one-game losing streak. Colorado fell to 14-18. Olson is one home run away from 300 career homers, while Riley sits two runs away from 500 career runs scored.