Soler’s Homer, Pederson’s Catch Lift Braves Over Giants 6-5

ATLANTA (AP) — Joc Pederson felt similar an elite NFL wide receiver erstwhile helium made a game-saving drawback for the Atlanta Braves.

Jorge Soler deed a go-ahead, three-run homer successful the seventh inning, Pederson made a leaping drawback astatine the wall for the last retired and the Braves rallied to bushed San Francisco 6-5 connected Friday nighttime to extremity the Giants’ five-game winning streak.

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Wilmer Flores led disconnected the ninth with a homer against Braves person Will Smith to trim Atlanta’s pb to one.

Smith got a groundout and a strikeout earlier Tommy La Stella drove a precocious alert to the informing way successful right. Pederson overran it somewhat but reached backmost arsenic helium jumped into the partition and held connected to implicit Smith’s 29th save. A video reappraisal confirmed the drawback was good.

“I did my champion Davante Adams impression,” Pederson said, comparing himself to the Green Bay Packers playmaking wideout. “I went up and came down with the ball. ‘It’s a catch!’”

Perhaps astir awesome was Pederson’s quality to support the shot arsenic it appeared to beryllium connected the verge of escaping the thenar of his mitt arsenic helium fell to the informing track.

“It was genuinely an unthinkable play,” Soler said done a translator.

“I had to look astatine it connected the replay, to spot it for sure,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “I asked Joc erstwhile helium came done ‘Did you drawback that?’ He said, ‘Yeah, I caught it.’”

Giants 3rd baseman Kris Bryant was pulled pursuing a 35-minute rainfall hold successful the archetypal inning owed to close broadside tightness. Manager Gabe Kapler said the determination was made anterior to the delay, and that the squad would person much connected the 2016 NL MVP’s presumption Saturday.

Buster Posey deed a two-run homer successful his instrumentality to San Francisco’s lineup and the Giants led 4-2 earlier the Braves rallied with 4 runs successful the seventh. After Ozzie Albies’ RBI treble disconnected Tony Watson (5-4) trimmed the Giants’ pb to one, Soler deed Zack Littell’s archetypal pitch over the left-field partition for a two-run lead.

Adam Duvall besides homered for the Braves successful the matchup of NL part leaders. The Giants began the nighttime 2 1/2 games up of the Los Angeles Dodgers successful the NL West. The Braves were 5 1/2 games up of Philadelphia successful the NL East.

“We were capable to unopen the doorway connected 1 of the champion teams successful baseball,” Pederson said. “That’s a precise large triumph for us.”

Posey, a autochthonal of Leesburg, Georgia, returned aft missing 2 games with discomfort successful his near knee. He lifted a first-inning fastball from Max Fried precocious toward the right-field foul pole. Fried watched with an incredulous look arsenic the fly shot remained fair and fell into the archetypal enactment of the close tract seats.

Kevin Gausman allowed 2 runs connected six hits successful six innings successful his archetypal commencement against the Braves since pitching for Atlanta successful 2018-19.

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“I deliberation helium was trying to find his bushed early,” Kapler said. “I don’t deliberation helium had it. … I deliberation helium got amended arsenic the crippled went on.”

A.J. Minter (2-4) pitched a scoreless seventh successful alleviation of Fried, who allowed 4 runs, 3 earned, successful six innings.

Following the first-inning delay, Dansby Swanson’s infield deed loaded the bases with 2 outs, but Gausman ended the inning connected Travis d’Arnaud’s grounder to archetypal base.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Giants: C Curt Casali was disposable aft leaving Thursday night’s crippled with dizziness. Kapler said tests connected Casali “didn’t find immoderate grounds of a concussion.” … Kapler said 2B Donovan Solano gave support to disclose helium was afloat vaccinated erstwhile helium tested affirmative for the coronavirus and was placed nether quarantine connected Thursday. .

Braves: RHP Ian Anderson, who has been connected the injured database since July 13 with close enarthrosis inflammation, is expected to beryllium activated to commencement Sunday’s last crippled of the series. Anderson is 5-5 with a 3.56 ERA successful 18 starts.

ROSTER MOVES

Outfielder Eddie Rosario was reinstated from the Braves’ 10-day injured database but did not play. Outfielder Abraham Almonte was designated for assignment. Rosario was recovering from an abdominal strain erstwhile acquired from Cleveland astatine the commercialized deadline.

The Giants optioned catcher Chadwick Tromp to Triple-A Sacramento to wide a spot for Gausman’s instrumentality from the COVID-19 injured list.

SOLER POWER

Celebrating with his teammates successful the Braves’ dugout pursuing his homer, Soler pulled disconnected his batting helmet to uncover a “Soler Power” headband. Acquired from Kansas City astatine the commercialized deadline, Soler has 19 homers, including six successful 23 games with Atlanta.

UP NEXT

Giants: RHP Logan Webb (7-3, 2.84) volition effort to proceed a beardown 2nd half. Webb is 3-0 with a 1.72 ERA successful his past 5 starts though helium has been much palmy astatine location this season, with a 1.71 ERA compared to his 3.88 roadworthy mark.

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Braves: RHP Huascar Ynoa (4-3, 2.89) is 0-1 portion allowing a combined 3 runs successful 2 starts since missing fractional the play with a close manus fracture.