The Atlanta Braves took down the Cincinnati Reds, 2-1, in a walk-off win in the bottom of the 10th inning on Wednesday.
Marcellebrate good times, come on pic.twitter.com/4J1Tgrkw2Y
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) May 7, 2025
With their win in the second game of a four-game series, they snapped a season-long winless streak. This was the first time this season they won a game where they scored three runs or fewer.
In those scenarios, they are now 1-14. It’s a start.
Think of all the normal low-scoring final scores you witness in a season. It could be 2-1 or 3-2 or 1-0 or any score in between. The Braves did not win a game by any of those scores until this most recent win. Put a checkmark next to a 2-1 score.
In their defense, they haven’t lost games by those scores very much either.
This was only the fifth time this season that two runs were enough to win a game. Meanwhile, there have been 13 games where scoring four runs wouldn’t have been enough.
The Braves are consistently inconsistent - to use an old phrase.
Well, there was one way they remained consistent. Even in the low-scoring affair, they saved their runs for a late-game rally and a walk-off. The dramatics stuck around.
This still counts as finding a new way to win. The offense strung together a couple runs and the pitching staff was still able to take care of the rest.
If they can get back to winning in this fashion, it would be a return to one of their strong suits from last season. They finished 22-50 (.306) in games where they scored three runs or fewer. This was, believe it or not, the second-best winning percentage in MLB. The Milwaukee Brewers were two losses better (22-48), giving them a better winning percentage (.314).
Shocker: Not scoring doesn’t help any team. However, some teams can be better at overcoming a sluggish offensive night. The Braves have been that team before, and now that they’ve pulled it off even one time this year, it can spark some of those wins.
It’s a long season. It can hurt to diversify the way you get in the win column.
More must-reads:
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!