The Atlanta Braves beat the Chicago Cubs by 7-6 on Tuesday evening in the opener of a three-game National League set at Truist Park.
The Cubs took an early lead with two runs each in the top of the second and third innings. They added one run each in the fourth and sixth. The Braves charged back with three runs in the bottom of the sixth to include a home run by Kevin Pillar to open the inning, an RBI single by Matt Olson, and an RBI double by Marcell Ozuna. Sean Murphy took a walk to begin the bottom of the seventh and made it to home plate a couple of batters later on a home run from Ronald Acuna Jr. which put the Braves within a run of the Cubs.
Murphy reached and two runners scored on a throwing error in the bottom of the eighth. That gave Atlanta a 7-6 lead.
Brad Hand picked up the win in relief for Atlanta, and Raisel Iglesias got the save. Starting pitcher Bryce Elder gave up five runs and seven hits, walked four, and struck out two in three and two-third innings. Drew Smyly took the loss for Chicago.
The NL East champion Braves improved their MLB-best record to 101-56 on the 2023 regular season, while the Cubs are now 82-75. The teams will meet again tonight at 7:20 pm. Catch all the action on WLAQ 1410 AM/96.9 FM; airtime is 6:05 pm from the Atlanta Braves Radio Network.