Sean Murphy hit two home runs and Reynaldo Lopez pitched five scoreless innings to spark the Atlanta Braves to a 7-0 win over the visiting Detroit Tigers on Wednesday and a sweep of their three-game series. The Braves have won three straight and six of their last seven. The Tigers have lost four in a row. It was the first time Atlanta has swept a three-game series against Detroit. Murphy went 4-for-4 with four RBI, three runs scored and produced the fourth multi-homer game of his career. He hit a two-run homer over the brick wall in right field in the third inning, his first career hit against Tigers starter Tarik Skubal. He iced the game with a two-run blast in the fifth, a 423-foot shot into the seats in left-center field, giving him three homers this season. Lopez (5-2) allowed seven hits, one walk and struck out six. He lowered his ERA to 1.57 to take over the major league lead and extended his streak of scoreless innings to 11. It was his fifth scoreless appearance of the season.
Aaron Bummer followed with two scoreless innings, Daysbel Hernandez pitched a scoreless eighth with two strikeouts, and Grant Holmes finished with a perfect ninth. Skubal (8-3) lasted only four innings, his shortest start of the season, and allowed a season-high five runs (four earned) on seven hits, two walks and seven strikeouts. The Braves scored a run in the second inning on Ozzie Albies’ RBI single and added Murphy’s two-run homer in the third.
Atlanta added another pair in the fourth to take a 5-0 lead. Ramon Laureano hit the first pitch 426 feet into the stands in left-center for his second homer and first since joining the Braves. Atlanta finished the homestand with a 5-1 record and begin a three-game series in New York against the Yankees on Friday. The Tigers were 1-5 on their road trip and return home to play the Chicago White Sox on Friday. –Field Level Media
