Austin Riley delivered Atlanta’s biggest swing of the season Tuesday, launching a three-run homer in the eighth inning to lift the Braves past the Philadelphia Phillies 5–3 in Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Series at Truist Park.
The win gives Atlanta a 1–0 lead in the best-of-three series and puts the Braves one victory away from advancing. Philadelphia had taken a 3–2 lead in the seventh before Riley flipped the game an inning later. Battery Power recapped the 5–3 finish.
Riley erased a one-run deficit
The Braves entered the bottom of the eighth trailing 3–2. Riley’s three-run shot off Phillies closer Jhoan Duran turned that deficit into a 5–3 Atlanta lead, and Raisel Iglesias finished the game in the ninth.
Chris Sale gave Atlanta a strong postseason start, striking out nine while pitching into the seventh inning. Michael Harris II collected three hits, and Ozzie Albies helped create early offense with a triple.
Atlanta can close the series Wednesday
Game 2 is scheduled for Wednesday at 2 p.m. at Truist Park. Under MLB’s best-of-three Wild Card format, another Braves win would end the series without a Game 3.
Philadelphia now faces elimination, while Atlanta gets its first chance to close out a postseason series against the Phillies after recent October losses to its division rival.
