Lucas Sims got into a groove and deftly handled the Mariners, while the Braves found ways to score run after run in the middle innings, and evened the series with a 4-0 Braves win. Sims, making his fifth career start and going for a second straight pitching victory allowed just five baserunners in six innings, striking out four Seattle hitters and offering only two free passes. The bullpen then slammed the door, and dropped the Mariners to just one game over .500.
The first three innings were scoreless, as both Sims and Mariners’ starter Marco Gonzales worked out of a few jams. After a 1-2-3, nine-pitch first inning from Sims, the Braves strung together two two-out singles but were unable to score as Nick Markakis struck out on a changeup from Gonzales. In the second, Sims worked around a one-out single with few problems, while the Braves potentially ran themselves out of a run as Tyler Flowers drew a leadoff walk, moved to second on a groundout, and then was thrown out on an inexplicable steal attempt of third base, which preceded a Dansby Swanson single. Sims also issued a leadoff walk to the opposing catcher in the third, but got the next three in order, while the Braves could do nothing in the bottom of the inning despite a Brandon Phillips single and subsequent steal of second.
Things got more lively in the fourth. Sims yielded a leadoff double on the first pitch of the inning to Robinson Cano, on a play that literally had a one percent hit probability.
Fortunately, that did not come back to haunt him or the Braves, as Nelson Cruz lined out to Matt Kemp on a much more difficult fielding play (66 percent hit probability), Kyle Seager popped out, and Sims retired Mitch Haniger on strikes. Nick Markakis then made up for his lack of a breakthrough in the first by depositing a full-count Gonzales changeup very, very similar to the one that he struck out on over the right-field fence for his eighth homer of the season.
Sims finally allowed two baserunners in the same inning in the fifth, courtesy of a one-out single and walk following a sacrifice bunt from the pitcher. But, he got Yonder Alonso to roll out on the first pitch, completing his shutdown inning mission.
Gonzales got two quick outs in the fifth, which marked the first time he had done so all season. Unfortunately for him, that was as far as he’d get, as a walk to Freeman and another single from Kemp chased him. In came lefty reliever James Pazos, and Nick Markakis struck again, lining a single over short to make it a 2-0 game. Unfortunately, Matt Kemp was thrown out trying to advance to third on the play, stifling the rally with just one run scored.
Sims threw another shutdown inning with a 1-2-3 sixth for his final frame of the night. His start was bookended with the three up, three down innings, and he finished his night with 95 pitches thrown. The Braves scored a third run in really weird fashion in the bottom of the inning. Ozzie Albies drew a one-out walk, and advanced to second on a Lane Adams pinch-hit single. Ender Inciarte then hit a sinking liner that was smothered, but not caught, by shortstop Jean Segura behind the second base bag. Albies rounded third base, and Segura fired to the third baseman behind him, who then threw home. It looked like the Braves would register another rally-killing out on the basepaths, but the relay throw back from the catcher was dropped, and Albies scampered home to score the third run. Unfortunately, Inciarte was caught in no man’s land between first and second thereafter, as Lane Adams did not get too far off the second base bag, and was tagged out. But, the run counted, no matter how weird the play was.
After Jose Ramirez tossed a scoreless seventh, the Braves capped the scoring thanks to some more poor Mariners defense. Brandon Phillips, facing new reliever Dan Altavilla, hit a routine pop fly to center fielder Mitch Haniger, who pooched the catch, allowing Phillips to slide in to second. A few pitches from Altavilla later and Freeman lined one back up the box to Haniger, scoring Phillips. Kemp would walk to extend the inning, but the rally was extinguished thanks to a double play off Markakis’ bat and a lineout to second from Flowers.
The Braves tabbed Sam Freeman to pitch the eighth, and he managed it in just eight pitches. Five of those were devoted to a strikeout of pinch-hitter Taylor Motter, and after the sixth was a plunking of Cano, Nelson Cruz hit a hard smash back to a perfectly-positioned Ozzie Albies at double play depth, who flipped to Swanson for an easy inning-ending double play. Freeman stayed in to retire Kyle Seager for the first out in the ninth, and then Arodys Vizcaino slammed the door despite giving up a double and a walk to the first two batters he faced.
The Braves pounded out 11 hits in all, with six of them collected by the middle of the order (Freeman, Kemp, Markakis). Tyler Flowers was the only starter not to collect a hit for the Braves, but every spot in the batting order reached base at least once. Meanwhile, Zunino was the only Mariner to reach base more than once, going 2-for-3 with a walk.
R.A. Dickey will face Erasmo Ramirez in the rubber game tomorrow night.