The Astros swept the Braves in a three-game series and have won four in a row!
Just like they did in the whole series, the Astros came once again from behind to escape with the W in Atlanta. On Sunday afternoon, they completed a three-game series sweep against the Braves with a 5-2 win to extend their winning streak to four contests.
Righty Cristian Javier and lefty Max Fried got into a beautiful pitching duel. The former went six innings of three hits and two runs (one earned), plus two walks and 10 strikeouts. The latter pitched 6 2/3 scoreless innings of three hits, three free passes, and five punchouts.
The scoreboard remained in zeroes until Kevin Pillar homered in the first. In the sixth, the Braves added one more to their lead and made it 2-0. Nonetheless, Javier got out of the inning. His 10 punchouts were a season-high for him in 2023 and his first 10-strikeout since July 13, 2022.
Javier’s performance included seven straight strikeouts. He struck out Vaughn Grisson, Pillar, Chadwick Tromp, Ronald Acuña Jr., Matt Olson, Austin Riley, and Ozzie Albies in a row.
The Astros were silenced until the two final innings of the game, in which they scored their five runs.
With bases loaded, red-hot Yordan Álvarez knocked a two-run, game-tying single to score Mauricio Dubón and Alex Bregman in the eighth inning.
HE TIES IT AGAIN pic.twitter.com/1ObAnjgOyx
— Houston Astros (@astros) April 23, 2023
An inning later, Corey Julks hit another RBI single to give the team a 3-2 lead. After Dubón was hit by a pitch, Bregman followed with a two-run single to make it 5-2 and put the Astros closer to the sweep.
Corey Julks pic.twitter.com/pNeb3MG2HE
— Houston Astros (@astros) April 23, 2023
After recording the save on Saturday, Bryan Abreu got his second save of the season with a scoreless inning of a walk and a strikeout.
Speaking of good performances, Dubón extended his hitting streak to 17 games and tied the longest of this season – Bryson Stott also got to 17.
To finish their road trip, the Astros are set to head to Tropicana Field for a three-game series against the Rays, who own the best record in the MLB with 19 wins and three losses. On Monday (5:40 pm CT), José Urquidy will be facing Taj Bradley.