Joe Mather shines as Atlanta Braves rout Los Angeles Angels, 5-4: MLB Update
Atlanta Braves’ out-fielder, Joe Mather had a remarkable day with the bat as he hammered 4-for-6 including four RBIs in the Braves’ 5-4 victory over the Los Angeles Angels at the Angel Stadium of Anaheim, California, on May 21.
Mather was much excited after this convincing win. Speaking to reporters, he said, “I didn't come out and win a job by any means, so I wasn't bitter or anything like that. That just wanted me to work on my swing and get some at-bats. I felt like if I got
another shot.”
Bobby Abreu hit a solo homer (362 feet) towards the right field in the very first inning and Erick Aybar scored a single run to give the Angels an initial 2-0 lead. The pitchers raised the momentum of their teams from second to fourth inning as they restricted
the batters to score no run. The Angels’ batters displayed an outstanding performance in the beginning as they outclassed the pitchers of the Braves and added another two runs in the fifth inning.
The Angels were on top with 4-0 when Torii Hunter singled to left field while Maicer Izturis and Abreu both contributed two runs. The sixth inning passed away with no score, but the Braves’ batters started their seventh inning with a blast and added four
runs in it to tie the game with 4-all.
Mather struck a three-run homer (394 feet) off the left field position in the seventh inning. Alex Gonzalez and Freddie Freeman scored two runs. The fourth run of the seventh inning was taken by Martin Prado when Brian McCann doubled to deep centre field.
The game remained level until ninth inning so additional innings were given to both sides.
Both the teams were unable to hit a tie-breaking run after two extra innings. But in the top of 12th inning, the Braves pushed their lead to 5-4 when Gonzalez scored a run on the drive of Mather to right field.
The Braves’ Manager Fredi Gonzalez said, “I hate the word deserved, but I think maybe we earned this victory just by our perseverance because we kept battling. Nobody gives you anything. We had some opportunities early, but he made some big pitches.”
Tommy Hanson was little bit expensive as he gave away four runs on five hits in his six inning pitches with an ERA of 2.72.
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