WASHINGTON (DA) — Ozzie Albies drove in four runs and delivered the decisive blow with a ninth-inning home run as the Atlanta Braves beat the Washington Nationals 7-2.
Albies finished 3-for-4 with a home run, four RBIs and two runs scored, leading a 14-hit Atlanta attack. His ninth-inning homer came off José A. Fernández and capped a game in which the Braves steadily pulled away.
Atlanta broke a 1-1 tie with two runs in the fourth and added four more in the seventh before Albies’ late blast. Matt Olson had three hits and scored twice, while Michael Harris II added three hits and two RBIs.
The Nationals opened the scoring in the first inning and briefly leveled the game at 2-2 in the fourth, but managed just five hits the rest of the way. James Wood and CJ Abrams each drove in a run for Washington.
Grant Holmes secured the win for Atlanta, allowing two runs on five hits over seven innings with seven strikeouts. The Braves bullpen closed it out with two scoreless frames.
Atlanta improved to 18-8, while Washington dropped to 11-15.