The host Miami Marlins – who have the worst record in the National League – damaged the Atlanta Braves’ playoff hopes with a 4-3 win on Friday night.
Atlanta (83-71) is chasing the New York Mets for the final NL wild-card playoff berth.
Miami (57-97) has had some success against Atlanta this season, going 4-7 with two games remaining this weekend.
Valente Bellozo (3-4) earned the win, allowing three runs in 5 1/3 innings. Miami used four relievers to lock it down as Jesus Tinoco earned his second save with a perfect ninth inning.
Charlie Morton (8-9) took the loss, allowing four walks, seven hits and four runs in six innings.
Miami got to Morton right away with a three-run, first-inning rally started by Connor Norby’s single and Jesus Sanchez’s walk. The Marlins cashed in with Jake Burger’s RBI double, Kyle Stowers’ run-scoring single and Jonah Bride’s sacrifice fly.
Bellozo escaped trouble in the second. Atlanta had runners on the corners with two outs before Bellozo got Orlando Arcia to swing and miss on a 3-2 sweeper that was low and away.
Atlanta loaded the bases with one out in the third. Former Marlins slugger Jorge Soler, looking for a grand slam, settled for a 380-foot sacrifice fly as Atlanta closed its deficit to 3-1.
In the fourth, Arcia – after his earlier miss – homered on a first-pitch sweeper that was up in the zone to make it 3-2.
Miami stretched its lead to 4-2 in the fifth as Norby walked, stole second, advanced on Sanchez’s groundout and scored when Morton bounced a curveball low and away for a wild pitch.
Atlanta got that run back in the sixth as Rafael Laureano slugged a 404-foot homer to right-center.
With two outs and none on in the seventh, former Marlins star Marcell Ozuna nearly tied the score. Instead, his 387-foot drive went off the wall in right-center for a long single. Then, with two runners on, Soler grounded out to end the threat.
The Braves then sent just three batters to the plate in the eighth and ninth innings as Miami hung on for the win.
–Field Level Media
