Diamondbacks Come Up Short in Bid to Sweep Braves

The Arizona Diamondbacks had an opportunity to make a major statement Sunday afternoon in Atlanta.

After winning the first two games of their three-game series against the Braves, Arizona entered the August 16 finale looking for a road sweep. Instead, one swing from one of Atlanta's most dangerous power hitters turned a tie game into a Diamondbacks loss.

Matt Olson launched a three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to break a 2-2 tie and propel the Braves to a 5-3 victory at Truist Park.

Arizona fell to 66-59 with the loss, but the Diamondbacks still leave Atlanta having won two of three against one of the National League's better teams.

For a Diamondbacks club fighting for postseason positioning, taking a road series in Atlanta remains an encouraging result even if Arizona was only a few innings away from something even bigger.

Michael Soroka Keeps Diamondbacks in the Game

Michael Soroka returned to Atlanta and gave the Diamondbacks exactly what they needed from their starting pitcher: an opportunity to win.

Atlanta opened the scoring in the third inning when Drake Baldwin delivered an RBI single that brought Dominic Smith home and gave the Braves a 1-0 advantage.

Arizona didn't trail for long.

Gabriel Moreno answered in the fourth inning by hitting his ninth home run of the season, tying the game at 1-1.

Moreno's homer continued an encouraging stretch for the Arizona catcher. After recording three hits in Saturday's 10-3 victory, Moreno carried that momentum into Sunday's finale and provided Arizona's first run of the afternoon.
The Braves regained the lead in the fifth.

Ronald Acuña Jr. delivered an RBI double that scored Austin Riley and pushed Atlanta back in front, 2-1.

Despite falling behind again, the Diamondbacks remained within one swing of tying the game.

That swing eventually came from Ildemaro Vargas.

Ildemaro Vargas Delivers Another Big Home Run

Arizona entered the seventh inning trailing 2-1 before Vargas stepped to the plate and changed the complexion of the game.

Vargas connected for his ninth home run of the season, tying the game at 2-2 and putting the Diamondbacks in position to potentially steal the finale late.

At that moment, Arizona was nine outs away from potentially completing a three-game sweep in Atlanta.

The Diamondbacks had already responded twice after falling behind. Soroka had kept the game close. Moreno and Vargas had supplied the power.

Momentum appeared to be shifting toward Arizona.

Then Matt Olson came to the plate.

Matt Olson's Three-Run Homer Changes Everything

The defining moment of Sunday's game came in the bottom of the seventh inning.

With Taylor Clarke pitching for Arizona and Atlanta putting runners aboard, Olson came to the plate with an opportunity to break the tie.

He didn't miss it.

Olson drove a three-run home run to center field, turning a 2-2 game into a 5-2 Braves advantage almost instantly.

It was Olson's 36th home run of the season and ultimately proved to be the difference in the game.

Clarke was charged with the loss and fell to 2-3.

For Arizona, it was a painful reminder of how quickly a close game can change against a lineup possessing Atlanta's power.

The Diamondbacks had spent six-plus innings staying within striking distance and had finally pulled even. One pitch and one Olson swing erased all of that work.

Diamondbacks Attempt a Ninth-Inning Rally

Arizona didn't completely go away after Olson's home run.

The Diamondbacks entered the ninth trailing by three and attempted to put together one final rally.

Ketel Marte reached base and eventually scored when Tim Tawa drove him home, cutting Atlanta's advantage to 5-3.

The rally ended there.

Raisel Iglesias closed the door for the Braves, earning his 25th save and securing Atlanta's 5-3 victory.

Arizona finished the afternoon with three runs on six hits and committed no errors. Atlanta scored five runs on eight hits and also played error-free baseball.

The difference was ultimately Atlanta's ability to capitalize on its biggest scoring opportunity.

Arizona hit two solo home runs.

Atlanta hit one three-run homer.

That was the ballgame.

Gabriel Moreno Continues to Heat Up

One of the biggest positives Arizona can take from Atlanta is the performance of Moreno.

The Diamondbacks catcher entered Sunday coming off a three-hit performance Saturday and followed it by going deep in the series finale.

Moreno's offensive production becomes even more important as Arizona prepares for Fenway Park.

Boston presents a dramatically different offensive environment than many ballparks, particularly for hitters capable of driving the baseball to the opposite field and finding gaps.

If Moreno carries his Atlanta production into Boston, Arizona's lineup becomes considerably deeper.

The Diamondbacks don't necessarily need every hitter to carry the offense simultaneously. What they need is production throughout the batting order so opposing pitchers cannot simply navigate around Arizona's biggest threats.

Moreno can be an important piece of that equation.

Arizona Needed More From the Top of the Order

While Moreno and Vargas supplied Arizona's two home runs, the Diamondbacks weren't able to consistently pressure Atlanta's pitching staff.

Braves starter Bryce Elder limited Arizona to one run over six innings and prevented the Diamondbacks from creating the type of sustained rallies that could have changed the game.

Geraldo Perdomo finished 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, while Corbin Carroll went 1-for-4.

Against a team with Atlanta's offensive firepower, Arizona needs its table setters reaching base consistently.

Solo home runs can keep a team in a game, but traffic on the bases changes everything.

That became painfully obvious when Olson came to the plate with runners aboard in the seventh.

Arizona's two home runs produced two runs.

Olson's one home run produced three.

Diamondbacks Still Win the Series in Atlanta

Sunday's loss shouldn't overshadow what Arizona accomplished during the weekend.

The Diamondbacks opened the series Friday with a 2-0 victory.

They followed it Saturday with an emphatic 10-3 win.

Atlanta avoided the sweep Sunday with its 5-3 victory.

The final result was a 2-1 series victory for Arizona, with the Diamondbacks outscoring the Braves 15-8 over the three games.

That's significant.

Arizona didn't travel to Atlanta and beat a struggling last-place opponent. The Diamondbacks went on the road against one of the stronger clubs in the National League and won the series.

They also came within a seventh-inning three-run homer of having a legitimate opportunity to sweep it.

That's the bigger picture Arizona should take into Boston.

Diamondbacks Starting Pitching Trending in Right Direction

Perhaps the most encouraging development from the Atlanta series was Arizona's starting pitching.

Brandon Pfaadt delivered one of the standout performances of the weekend Saturday, working seven scoreless innings while striking out seven and walking nobody.

Soroka then kept Arizona competitive Sunday.

When starting pitchers consistently keep games within reach, everything changes for a team trying to make a postseason push.

The offense doesn't have to score seven or eight runs every night. The bullpen doesn't have to repeatedly rescue games in the middle innings. The manager gains considerably more flexibility with matchups late in games.

Most importantly, good starting pitching travels.

That matters because Arizona's next destination is Boston.

Diamondbacks Now Head to Fenway Park

The Diamondbacks now leave Atlanta and head north for a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox beginning Monday, August 17 at Fenway Park.

Arizona will arrive disappointed that it couldn't finish the sweep but encouraged by the overall result of the Braves series.

The Diamondbacks won two of three.

Their starting pitching performed well.

Moreno appears to be heating up.

Marte was able to return to the lineup after dealing with left knee soreness.

And Arizona demonstrated it can compete with one of the National League's stronger teams on the road.

The next challenge will be carrying that momentum into one of baseball's most unique environments.

Fenway Park can dramatically alter games because of its dimensions, particularly the Green Monster in left field.

Pitchers have to attack hitters differently, while offenses capable of consistently putting balls in play can turn routine fly balls and line drives into doubles.

For Arizona, the key will be avoiding the type of inning that decided Sunday's game.

The Diamondbacks were competitive with Atlanta virtually the entire afternoon.

One three-run homer separated a potential sweep from a 5-3 loss.

Arizona Leaves Atlanta With Reasons for Optimism

Losing a game when you're nine outs away from potentially completing a road sweep is frustrating.

But Arizona should leave Atlanta feeling better about where this team stands than it did when the series began.

The Diamondbacks proved they could win a low-scoring game Friday.

They proved they could overwhelm Atlanta offensively Saturday.

And even in Sunday's loss, they remained tied entering the bottom of the seventh before Olson delivered the game's biggest swing.

That's three different types of baseball games against a quality opponent, and Arizona was competitive in all three.

The Diamondbacks now turn their attention toward Boston with an opportunity to make this road trip even more meaningful.

If the starting rotation continues delivering quality innings and hitters such as Moreno remain productive, Arizona has a legitimate opportunity to leave Fenway Park with another series victory.

The sweep disappeared with one swing Sunday.

​The momentum from winning the series doesn't have to.

Past Diamondbacks Articles:
Diamondbacks Crush Braves 10-3 as Arenado Powers Arizona 
Brandon Pfaadt Dominates as Diamondbacks Shut Out Braves 2-0 

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