Chris Sale reaches 200 strikeouts for 9th time as Braves edge Reds

Field Level Media

Mauricio Dubon’s infield chopper to the mound in the 10th inning gave the Atlanta Braves a 3-2 walk-off victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday.

With runners on the corners, Dubon grounded a pitch from Luis Mey (0-1) in front of the plate. Mey tried unsuccessfully to barehand the ball but never got possession, allowing pinch-runner DaShawn Keirsey Jr. to slide home with the winning run.

The Braves (93-65) improved to 8-6 in extra-inning games and took a 3-2 lead over Cincinnati (73-84) in the season series.

The Reds were retired in order by Brent Suter (3-2) in the top of the 10th.

Atlanta starter Chris Sale pitched 5 1/3 innings and allowed one run on four hits with 10 strikeouts. He was allowed to start the sixth inning in order to chase his 200th strikeout of the season and got the job done by fanning Sal Stewart.

Sale joined Hall of Famer Randy Johnson as the only two left-handers with nine-plus seasons of 200 strikeouts. Sale moved past Frank Tanana and into 26th place on the all-time strikeout list with 2,779.

Cincinnati starter Andrew Abbott pitched a season-long seven innings and allowed two runs on six hits and one walk. He struck out six batters, threw a wild pitch and picked off his third runner of the year.

Cincinnati’s Juan Brito led off the game with a home run, his third, a 408-foot shot to center field that just eluded the glove of Michael Harris II.

Atlanta’s Matt Olson tied the game in the sixth inning with a solo homer, his 41st, on a 415-foot drive to center field.

The Reds regained the lead in the seventh inning off Robert Suarez, who was activated Wednesday after spending 80 days on the injured list. Matt McLain led off with a triple off the brick wall in right field and scored on rookie Will Banfield’s sacrifice fly, his first career RBI.

Atlanta’s Austin Riley tied the game 2-2 with a leadoff homer in the bottom of the inning. His 18th homer just cleared the center field fence.

Brito and McLain both went 2-for-4 for the Reds, while Dubon, Olson and Riley each contributed two hits for the Braves.