Angels fall to Braves as Olson, Murphy hit big homers

Once again falling back below .500, the Los Angeles Angels fell to the Atlanta Braves, 8-3, on Wednesday evening at Truist Park. The Halos are now 42-43 and 22-23 on the road.

A red-hot Jo Adell helped get the Angels on the board early as he smacked a two-run single up the middle against Braves' starter Didier Fuentes. The 26-year-old has now hit safely in 13 straight games, posting a 1.012 OPS since June 1.

On the mound, Yusei Kikuchi looked impressive for most of his outing, working some trouble early. He escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the bottom of the first inning by striking out Jurickson Profar and inducing a flyout from Ozzie Albies. 

Profar made his return to the lineup for the first time this season on Wednesday after serving an 80-game suspension for PEDs. He finished 2-4, including a solo home run in the seventh inning that put the Braves in front 8-2.

Following the shaky first, Kikuchi went on to keep Atlanta off the board through 5 2/3 innings, tallying seven strikeouts. However, he could not find the final out in the sixth as a pair of two-out singles from Profar and Albies were enough to end his outing.

With Ryan Zeferjahn stepping on in relief, Sean Murphy immediately greeted him with a three-run home run to put the Braves in front 3-2. Zeferjahn continued to struggle, allowing a single and a pair of walks before first baseman Matt Olson delivered a grand slam to make it 7-2.

The right-hander was removed without recording a single out as the Atlanta lineup reached base in eight consecutive two-out at-bats to plate seven runs before Hunter Strickland finally retired the side. Zeferjahn was tagged for five runs, making it his first appearance this season, surrendering more than three. 

Kikuchi's final line saw him charged with two earned runs overall. He has now allowed three earned runs or fewer in his last 12 outings, bringing his ERA to 2.81 in the process.

Braves' relievers were able to prevent the Angels from sparking a rally in the later innings, conceding only one run and three hits over the final three frames. Daysbel Hernandez, Rafael Montero and Dylan Dodd each worked an inning of their own.

Jorge Soler did manage to reach a career milestone in the ninth off Dodd, blasting his 200th-career home run to deep left field. He became just the seventh Cuban-born player in MLB history to do so. 

The 33-year-old slugger is no stranger to Truist Park, having spent parts of 2021 and 2024 with the Braves. He hit 35 home runs with the club, playing a significant role in their 2021 playoff run that culminated with a championship.

Los Angeles will look to claim the series on Thursday afternoon in the rubber match. Right-hander Jose Soriano (5-5, 3.99 ERA) will start against Braves' right-hander Bryce Elder (2-5, 5.82 ERA).

First pitch is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. PT.