Dansby Swanson and Adam Walker homered and Ronald Acuna went 3-4 with two doubles, and Rio Ruiz also went 3-4, but the pitching staff struggled as the Braves fell to the Cardinals 9-4.
Dansby got the game started on the right foot for the Braves. Batting in the leadoff spot, Swanson clubbed his first homer of the spring to left-center to give the Braves a quick 1-0 lead. The newly acquired Adam Walker, who has shown some crazy raw power in his career, plated Rio Ruiz with his own bomb off of Adam Wainwright...this one to center and the Braves claimed a quick 3-0 lead.
Bartolo Colon, staked to a nice lead from the beginning, had a serviceable outing going 3 innings while allowing 2 hits and 2 runs. John Danks appearance went even worse than his first less than good appearance this spring as the Cardinals got him for 3 runs on 4 hits. For a player that is trying to come back and win a job as a longshot, it seems likely he could be looking for employment elsewhere soon.
Blaine Boyer, vying to return to the Braves as a reliever, came in next and did not fare better. Boyer gave up 3 runs in the bottom of the sixth and the Braves found themselves in an 8-3 hole. To make matters worse, former Braves’ outfielder turned reliever Jordan Schafer came on and struck out the first two batters he faced. Kade Scivicque singled to keep the Braves alive, but Schafer recorded another strikeout to finish off the inning.
However, the Braves would not go quietly. Ronald Acuna continued his assault on pitchers with an RBI double to pull the Braves closer. Paco Rodriguez also pitched a perfect inning of relief, which is good news for Braves fans as he continues his return from injury.