Lopez Dominates in Huge Win for Braves Over Phillies

Atlanta Braves pitcher Reynaldo López had been out with forearm tightness, but he returned in a big way against the Phillies on Tuesday night.

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Reynaldo López was clutch in the 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday. / Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Atlanta Braves starter Reynaldo López picked up right where he left off and led the team to a big 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday. It was the Braves third straight win.

López struck out a season-high 10 batters across five innings of one-run ball. To add to how impressive this night was, six of his strikeouts were against Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber, two of the most dangerous hitters in the lineup. 

“It was perfect, really. I really like when he was steppin’ on it,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said following the game. “It was really good. I think that was about as good as you can get right there.”

With his return, he lowered his season ERA to 2.05 which leads all pitchers who have pitched at least 100 innings this season. Keep in mind though, that Lopez does not qualify for the ERA title and likely won’t the rest of the season due to his injury. 

Regardless, this is the type of outing the Braves needed from Lopez, and they got it. Having him pitch like he never left was huge after a string of games where the starting pitching had struggled in his absence. 

Offense Backs Lopez’s Dominant Night 

The offense did its job tonight to back up Lopez’s effort on the mound. Michael Harris II drove in Whit Merrifield with an RBI single in the bottom of the third inning. Merrifield got the satisfaction of scoring against the team that released him just over a month ago. 

“To contribute and play well against a team that told you you weren’t good enough to play for them; it feels good,” Merrifield said after the game. “I’d be lying if I said it didn’t.” 

He did want to emphasize that he doesn’t have any bad blood with the Phillies despite being cut.

“I do love those guys,” he said. “I wish them the best, just a little bit less when they play the Braves."

Merrifield has improved at the plate since coming to Atlanta. His average is up from .199 with the Phillies to .236 with the Braves and his OPS is up from .572 to .709. 

J.T. Realmuto tied the game 1-1 in the top of the fourth and the game would stay tied for the next two innings. Marcell Ozuna put the Braves back on top with a solo shot for his 37th home run of the season. He inches closer to that batting triple crown. 

His .309 average and 94 RBIs both lead the National League. He trails Shohei Ohtani by two home runs. 

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When asked if he keeps track of his pace, he pointed out that tries not to. 

“I don’t worry about it because on the other side, everybody knows there is a robot. Ohtani is a robot,” Ozuna said. 

Gio Urshela picked up an insurance run to cap off scoring in his Braves debut. He drew a walk with the bases loaded to make the game 3-1, and that would be the final score. 

The Braves entered this series knowing what was on the line. It’s make or break for any hopes of catching up in the division. It can also determine their playoff hopes period. They don’t have much room for error left. 

At least on Tuesday night, they made the most of it. With the win, they are once again six games back from first place and gained a half-game on the Mets for a 2.5-game lead in the Wild Card chase. Every head-to-head win gets them that much closer. There are six more games against the Phillies down the stretch.

You never know.