Atlanta Braves clinch 4-3 win against Los Angeles Dodgers as they go 11-7 in the season - MLB
Left-fielder Martin Prado’s triple to right-centre takes the Atlanta Braves to a 4-3 victory in the ninth inning against Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California on April 24, 2012.
An amazing upsurge by the Braves in the season continues as one of the All-time best third basemen Chipper Jones hits a homer and celebrates his 40th birthday in thumping fashion during the game.
In the bottom of the first, Dodgers surged to a two run lead. After a slumber of three innings, the Braves woke up in a style. Jones sparks a homer and Prado grounds out, only to allow Jason Heyward complete the second run and tie the score as a result.
Building on their fifth inning fireworks, the Braves surpassed Dodgers in the sixth with their catcher Brian McCann scoring a run.
Jones was ecstatic on his birthday. While expressing the way pitcher threw him into confusion at-times, he said he managed things successfully in the end.
"He threw me a couple of off-speed pitches my first at-bat, and I thought he might challenge me in at some point that second at-bat," said Jones. "I got one up and got out in front of it. You've really got to put a charge into one to hit it out of here at
night.”
Starter Mike Minor did not have the best of the starts for the Braves. Six innings he threw leaked eight hits, including three runs and just two strike-outs.
Closer Craig Kimbrel did fairly good job for the Braves and threw a scoreless inning, disallowing the Dodgers to take the game into the tenth inning or clinch it altogether from there.
The win has brought the Braves closer to the Washington Nationals in terms of victories in the National League East Division as they now stand 11-7. If the current performance stays, they are in a decent position to fetch a possible postseason spot.
The fact last season the Braves enjoyed similar kind of standing for most part and crumbled in just one month, the manager will have this issue in his mind.
Keeping this in view, the team can better understand the importance of maintaining focus.
How far they can go in this regard will be known as the season unfolds.
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