First baseman Matt Olson crushed a go-ahead home run for the Atlanta Braves on July 12 as they defeated the New York Mets 4-1.
Freddie Freeman’s exit from the Atlanta Braves is still talked about to this day. Once it was determined that both sides would be unable to reach an agreement on a contract, the Braves called the Oakland Athletics and managed to successfully acquire first baseman Matt Olson.
With the Braves battling against the New York Mets in a pivotal series with first-place implications in the NL East, Olson provided a signature moment.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, the Braves were trailing 1-0 after an RBI triple by Francisco Lindor in the previous inning. Olson stepped into the batter’s box with Dansby Swanson on base. On a 2-2 count, Olson sent a 94.3-mph pitch by David Peterson deep to center field to give Atlanta the 2-1 lead.
While Braves fans were concerned about what a team without Freddie Freeman looks like, Olson has provided a clear view: it’s a Braves team that is still very much a contender at bat.
Matt Olson helps give Braves much-needed win over Mets
It could not have come at a better time for the Braves, considering they lost the series-opening game on July 11.
Atlanta was able to pull out the 4-1 victory, with the other two runs coming on a home run by Adam Duvall in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Following this game, Olson is now slashing .251/.341/.469 while recording 14 home runs, a league-leading 33 doubles, 51 RBI, and 86 hits.
With the win, the Braves are now 1.5 games behind the Mets for first. They will look to decrease New York’s lead to half a game with a win in the series finale on July 13 at 12:20 p.m. ET., although as of the sixth inning, it looks as if the Mets will take this one.