The Atlanta Braves are looking to become the first team since the New York Yankees more than 20 years ago to win back to back World Series titles. Winning the National League East would go a long way toward reaching that goal. On Wednesday, the Braves lost a tight game to the lowly Washington Nationals, 3-2. Base running mistakes were one of the reasons for the loss, a problem that has persisted this year. After the game, Austin Riley was asked about it.
He clearly is not very concerned.
“We took care of the Phillies and took two out of three against Washington. You can nitpick as much as you want, but it’s a good home stand. I think we took care of business,” Riley said.
Riley is absolutely right. They swept the Phillies to open the home stand last weekend, then took two of three from the Nationals.
Entering play Tuesday, the Braves are just one game behind the New York Mets atop the division. However, they are tied in the loss column, which is huge. You cannot make up a loss but you can make up a win. Atlanta has 13 games remaining, all against the NL East.
They open up a crucial four-game series at the Phillies Thursday night. The series is just as big for Philadelphia. The Phillies are two games up on the Milwaukee Brewers for the final wild card spot.
After that, they head to Washington for another three-game set before coming back home to face the Mets in what could determine the division. The Braves finish out the regular season back on the road against the Miami Marlins.
Austin Riley is one of the biggest reasons the team is having such a great season. Riley is tied for third in the majors with 37 home runs, to go with 92 RBI and an .889 OPS.
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