Marlins starter Pablo López insisted he wasn’t trying to plunk Ronald Acuña Jr. The umpiring crew didn’t agree.
López was ejected after hitting Acuña with his very first pitch, leading to the only run as the Atlanta Braves edged Miami 1-0 Friday night.
“We all know Acuña is a superstar,” López said. “We all know the things he does. You also don’t want to put him on base because he’s a guy that can steal 40-50 bases a year.”
“But that was just a poorly executed sinker,” he said. “The ball just ran instead of sinking, and unfortunately hit him and that’s not what I want.”
ATLANTA (AP) â Sandy Alcantara pitched six strong innings, Garrett Cooper homered and drove in two runs, and the Miami Marlins beat the Atlanta Braves 3-2 on Saturday.
Tempers were calm a day after Pablo López was ejected for hitting Ronald Acuña Jr. on his first pitch of the game. The Marlins got a big assist from Alcantara, who saved the bullpen from extra work a day after Miami had to use five relievers to cover nine innings.
Alcantara (5-7) walked the first two batters he faced and issued two free passes in the third, but didnât allow a hit until Ozzie Albies singled with two outs in the third. He gave up one unearned run and five hits with four walks and four strikeouts, improving to 2-0 with a 2.68 ERA in six career starts against Atlanta.
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Hit batter on first pitch leads Braves to 1-0 win over Marlins
Field Level Media
03 Jul 2021, 13:19 GMT+10
One run produced in a tumultuous first inning, which included the ejection of Miami starter Pablo Lopez after one pitch, was all the Atlanta Braves needed to beat the visiting Marlins 1-0 on Friday night.
Lopez was tossed out after hitting Atlanta s Ronald Acura Jr. on the left arm with the first pitch of the game. No action was taken until Atlanta manager Brian Snitker walked onto the field and emphatically demanded Lopez be ejected.
The umpires gathered to consult as a group, and crew chief Dan Iassogna announced the ejection, which set off vehement protests from Miami manager Don Mattingly and pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr., who were both ejected.
Betts keys Dodgers nine-run rally in win over Nationals
Mookie Betts hit a go-ahead single during a nine-run rally in the seventh inning after Washington ace Max Scherzer departed, and the Los Angeles Dodgers surged past the Nationals 10-5 Friday night for their seventh straight win.
The Canadian Press Brusdar Graterol, Justin Turner, Albert Pujols , The Canadian Press
WASHINGTON (AP) Mookie Betts hit a go-ahead single during a nine-run rally in the seventh inning after Washington ace Max Scherzer departed, and the Los Angeles Dodgers surged past the Nationals 10-5 Friday night for their seventh straight win.
The Nationals lost slugger Kyle Schwarber in the second inning when he grabbed at his hamstring after a single. He hit a franchise-record 16 home runs in June.