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Braves walk off Nats, win 4-3 in NL East showdown

Chris Graham

washington nationalsA two-out, two-run Victor Robles homer forced a bottom of the ninth, but Josh Donaldson walked off the Nats with a bases-loaded single to lift Atlanta to a 4-3 win Friday night.

Washington reliever Fernando Rodney (0-1, 7.48 ERA) had pitched a perfect eighth ahead of the Robles game-tying bomb, but then couldn’t record an out in the ninth, walking Robert Acuna Jr, giving up an 0-2 single to Dansby Swanson, then walking Freddie Freeman on four pitches ahead of the long single by Donaldson on a 2-0 pitch.

Patrick Corbin only lasted five innings for the Nats, needing 100 pitches on a hot night, giving up two runs on eight hits, striking out five and walking two.

The loss evens the series at a game apiece, and leaves the Braves six and a half games ahead of Washington in the NL East.

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Chris Graham

Chris Graham

Chris Graham is the founder and editor of Augusta Free Press. A 1994 alum of the University of Virginia, Chris is the author and co-author of seven books, including Poverty of Imagination, a memoir published in 2019. For his commentaries on news, sports and politics, go to his YouTube page, TikTok, BlueSky, or subscribe to Substack or his Street Knowledge podcast. Email Chris at [email protected].