ATLANTA (DA) — Curaçao-born Ozzie Albies drove in the go-ahead run with a sixth-inning triple and scored twice as the Atlanta Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies 5-3 in Game 1 of their best-of-three National League Wild Card Series.
With the game tied 1-1 and one out in the sixth, Albies drove a pitch from Tanner McFarlane to center field for a triple, bringing Michael Harris II home and putting Atlanta ahead 2-1.
Albies finished 1-for-2 with an RBI, 2 runs and a walk. He also reached after being hit by a pitch.
Philadelphia erased Atlanta’s advantage with 2 runs in the seventh to move in front 3-2, but the Braves answered in the eighth. Albies was hit by Jhoan Duran before Austin Riley delivered a 3-run homer, scoring Harris and Albies and giving Atlanta a 5-3 lead.
Dylan Lee worked a scoreless eighth to earn the win, while Raisel Iglesias allowed one hit in the ninth and recorded the save. Chris Sale struck out 9 over 6 1/3 innings for Atlanta, allowing 3 runs on 4 hits and one walk.
Albies entered the postseason after playing all 162 regular-season games for the first time in his career. He batted .237 with 22 home runs, 27 doubles, 73 RBIs and 85 runs.
The second baseman also brought extensive postseason experience into the Wild Card Series. He entered Game 1 with a .250 postseason average, 42 hits, 3 home runs, 10 RBIs, 24 runs and 6 stolen bases in 43 games.
Albies is among the players still with Atlanta from the Braves’ 2021 World Series championship team. He was also in the lineup for Atlanta’s previous postseason meeting with Philadelphia in Game 4 of the 2023 National League Division Series.
The Braves hold a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series and can advance with another victory. Game 2 is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 30, at 2 p.m. ET at Truist Park in Atlanta.