May 8, 2024
ATLANTA (AP) — Geraldo Perdomo was determined he would not be intimidated by Atlanta's five-run first inning.
“I just said to my teammates, `If they do it, we can do it back,'” Perdomo said.
Perdomo gave Arizona the lead with a two-run double in the ninth inning and the Diamondbacks took advantage of Atlanta's worst pitching effort of the season to beat the Braves 16-13 on Tuesday night.
It was Arizona's first game in which each team had at least 13 runs and the first in the majors since the Chicago White Sox beat the Cubs 17-13 on Aug. 27, 2021.
Just as Perdomo predicted, the Diamondbacks answered Atlanta's five-run first by scoring five in the second. The high-scoring pace led to a football-like final score.
“Couple missed extra points,” Arizona manager Torey Lovullo joked.
Said Atlanta manager Brian Snitker: “We kept coming back. They did, too. It was like a Coors Field game.”
The NL East-leading Braves have lost three straight. Arizona snapped a four-game losing streak.
“If you want to call it a cleansing, I guess you could,” Lovullo said.
Christian Walker homered twice and had three hits and five RBIs for Arizona. Corbin Carroll had two hits, scored three runs and drove in two.
Miguel Castro (5-3) pitched a scoreless eighth and Kevin Ginkel struck out the side in the ninth for his first save.
With the game tied at 13, Arizona pinch-hitter Jake McCarthy led off the ninth with a bloop single off Braves closer Raisel Iglesias (3-4). Alex Thomas hit a soft grounder that bounced past Matt Olson for an error, putting runners at second and third.
Perdomo's double to center field gave Arizona the lead and Ketel Marte added a run-scoring single to push the lead to three runs. Marte drove in three runs with three hits.
Austin Riley drove in a career-high seven runs with three hits, including two homers — the last a go-ahead two-run shot in the sixth.
Dominic Canzone’s first career hit, a line drive single to right field off Kirby Yates in the eighth drove in Walker to tie it at 13. Kevin Pillar's diving catch of Emmanuel Rivera's sinking liner in left field ended the inning.
“Obviously, I'll never forget it,” Canzone said.
Arizona’s 16 runs are the most allowed by Atlanta this season. The previous high came in an 11-10 loss at Cincinnati on June 23.
Riley's first homer, a three-run shot in the fourth, gave the Braves a 9-8 lead in the fourth. Orlando Arcia's two-run homer in the fifth extended the lead to three runs, but the Diamondbacks rallied for a 12-11 lead on Walker's second homer in the sixth.
Riley and Murphy had two-run doubles in a five-run first that gave Atlanta a 5-2 lead. Emmanuel Rivera had a homer in Arizona’s five-run second.
