PITTSBURGH – The Braves blew out the Pirates on Wednesday 14-2 to sweep the series at PNC Park. The Braves are 78-48.
Here are five observations:
1. The Braves, who did not fall victim to a letdown after a terrific homestand, crushed the Pirates.
The Braves’ 14 runs scored in 14 hits. They batted around twice. Their onslaught included a five-run inning and a seven-run inning.
The Braves aren’t stopping. They just keep winning and are 14-2 in their past 16 games.
“We’ve got a lot of good guys in here,” Kyle Wright said. “It starts with guys staying on top of stuff. Got a lot of just really routine-oriented guys, and I think that plays a big part. We just never get too high, never get too low, you stay in the middle. I think that allows you to stay on top of things and ultimately be consistent.”
2. Mets fans understandably are frustrated.
Since the start of June, the Mets are 45-29 … and now they lead the National League East by only 1-1/2 games.
That’s because the Braves are 55-21 since the beginning of June. They have played so well so consistently.
“Good players, but also I feel like we show up to play every day, we show up to prepare,” Dansby Swanson said. “And I feel like we can beat you in different ways, right? We can pitch it, we can play defense and obviously we can swing it a little bit, too. Just whatever that day dictates, we’re going to make it happen.”
3. Matt Olson sent a ball high, far, over the right-field deck and into the Allegheny River.
Splash.
“I couldn’t really tell (from my) angle if it was fair or foul, but (it was) hit a long ways,” Swanson said.
The eighth-inning grand slam might have been the most electric highlight in an afternoon full of them. Olson had three extra-base hits.
“Those are things we strive for there – extra-base hits and finding gaps and driving runs in,” said Olson, who has 87 RBIs.
More specifically, a trend continued: Whereas he hit more doubles than home runs in the first half, he has notched more homers than doubles in the second half.
Olson has homered 10 times in 32 games since the All-Star break. He launched 17 homers over 94 games before it.
“I think people forget just him being in the American League,” Swanson said. “I feel like he was just learning the National League. It’s tough when you’ve never seen guys and you start to see them for the first time. I think that’s part of it. And also I think, too, him finding his groove. He’s a pro, and just finding his groove of him driving the ball out of the ballpark.”
4. There was one person who was (jokingly) upset about Olson’s grand slam.
Wright had completed seven shutout innings on 73 pitches. He has never gone the distance in a big-league game. He wanted it bad.
During the long top of the eighth, Wright told Snitker: “Let’s just wait a minute and see if somebody hits into a double play. I’m OK.”
Well, Olson launched the grand slam. The inning continued after that.
“I still haven’t apologized to Matt yet for that,” Wright joked.
In all seriousness, the Braves are focused on the bigger picture. They need Wright going forward, and they couldn’t risk injury in a blowout. He understood the decision and thought it was the correct one.
5. The Braves have won five consecutive series. If they want to make it six in a row, they’ll need to take two of three from the Cardinals, the NL Central’s first-place team, in St. Louis.
But the Braves continue to prove something: The season is not over until it’s actually over.
“It sure helps, everything that they’ve experienced over the last few years and all the big games they’ve played in and pennant races and all that,” manager Brian Snitker said of his team. “You know as long as you got a bunch of games left and you’re not eliminated, you got a chance. We’ll just continue. We’ve got another tough series coming, a team that’s playing really well. It’s going to be a good weekend.”
Stat to know
66, 45, 1 - Olson’s homer marked the 66th time a player has homered into the Allegheny River. Olson is the 45th different player to do it and the first Brave.
Quotable
“I feel like today, it kind of started out a little slow, and we were able to string some hits together and really just take advantage of miscues by them, and just take advantage of the opportunities that were given to us. It just happened up and down the lineup. I felt like we were good hitting with guys on base today, and that’s usually a pretty good recipe to score a lot of runs.” - Swanson on the win
Up next
The Braves are off Thursday before beginning a series in St. Louis on Friday. Spencer Strider will pitch the opener, which begins at 8:15 p.m. ET.
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