​The Braves once again made Matthew Liberatore look like Cy Young reincarnated, this time for the second time in just over a week. Reynaldo López battled through five innings, extending his streak of four straight starts with only one earned run allowed to remain intact up to this point. The first inning has been the consistent nemesis of López since he returned to the rotation, and tonight followed the same pattern. After two quick outs, Iván Herrera hit a slow roller to Jorge Mateo, followed by a Jordan Walker single, setting the stage for Lars Nootbar to launch a three-run homer and push the score to 3-0 in favor of the Cardinals. A quick collapse that felt like a ballgame in the first inning, if you can believe it, was unfolding before our eyes.
López regrouped in the second, navigating around a leadoff triple, and again in the third, but Nootbar’s leadoff walk and stolen base helped manufacture another run when Blaze Jordan singled, extending the lead to 4-0. The Braves showed a glimmer of hope by mounting a mini threat early in the game. An Ozzie Albies walk and a wild pitch advanced a runner in scoring position, but the opportunity fizzled. Liberatore then retired the Braves without a hit until Drake Baldwin lined a single in the fourth. The Braves could not capitalize on consecutive innings of leadoff singles by Austin Riley and Michael Harris II in the fifth and sixth, respectively. A sixth-inning single by Matt Olson put runners at the corners with one out, but Baldwin grounded into a double play to extinguish that rally.
Liberatore finished six scoreless innings on just 71 pitches, but he did not return to the mound for more work. The Braves finally cracked his code when Mauricio Dubón greeted new reliever Luis Gastelum with a leadoff homer on the first pitch to get Atlanta on the board. Thank you, Dubie. A notably poor plate appearance from Ozzie Riley followed. Eli White doubled, but the Braves stranded him after a groundout by Joey Bart and a strikeout by pinch-hitter Jim Jarvis.
Freshly recalled from Gwinnett, Owen Murphy entered and delivered scoreless frames in the sixth and seventh. The Braves went down in order against George Soriano in the eighth and staged their usual “false hope finale” in the ninth against Riley O’Brien. Drake’s leadoff walk, two quick outs, and Dominic Smith being HBP brought Joey Bart to the plate as the tying run. The Georgia Tech product could not conjure a dramatic homer and instead watched strike three close out the game for the Cardinals.
This one felt heavier than most, and it’s hard not to wonder who needs the All-Star break more—Atlanta or the team itself. Either way, a welcome pause to regroup and reset is on the horizon after tomorrow’s series finale at 2:15 pm ET. With a few days away from the grind, there’s space for reflection, adjustments, and a renewed push as the Braves head into the second half of the season.