ATLANTA -- Powered by Austin Riley's two-out, three-run, go-ahead homer in the eighth inning, the Braves scored a dramatic 5-3 win in Game 1 of a NL Wild Card Series contest over the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday.
Phillies reliever Jhoan Duran's first pitch after a review delay was a 99.9 mph fastball in the middle of the plate, and Riley hit it just over the fence in right-center field.
Riley had a down season with career worsts in most offensive categories, but Braves manager Walt Weiss stayed optimistic that Riley's consistent mental approach would lead to results.
"You couldn't tell this year if he was the leading MVP candidate or if he was struggling, I mean that," Weiss said. "He was the same guy every day. Stuff like this doesn't happen if you ride that roller coaster of emotion as a player."
When asked if he knew the ball was gone off the bat, after a long pause Riley admitted, "No, I did not. I was praying it was going as I was running to first."
He said he took the approach to facing Duran like any regular season at-bat, then revealed a bit more about his own mentality: "That's the beauty of the postseason: clean slate."
It was a back-and-forth game, with the Braves taking a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the sixth when Ozzie Albies hit a triple to deep center field. The Phillies took a 3-2 lead when J.T. Realmuto hit a two-run triple into the right-field corner in the next half inning. Weiss recognized similarities in the tight action when the Braves and Phillies match up in the playoffs.
"That's usually how it goes when these two teams play each other," he said.
Both starting pitchers were excellent, with Braves lefty Chris Sale hitting playoff career highs with 6⅓ innings pitched and nine strikeouts. It was Sale's first playoff start since 2021.
"It was exciting," he said. "I could've pitched this game at 8:15 this morning. It felt like one of those scary movies where my eyes opened and I just popped out of bed."
Phillies lefty Jesus Luzardo missed nearly three weeks with left shoulder inflammation, returned from the IL to throw one relief inning on Sunday, and was on a pitch count Tuesday, but delivered five innings of one-run ball with six strikeouts.
"He gave us more [innings] than we thought he would, honestly," Phillies manager Don Mattingly said.
Rookie Didier Fuentes relieved Sale and gave up Realmuto's triple, letting two inherited runners score. Sale had his teammate's back:
"We have faith and trust in each other. [Fuentes] is the right guy for that situation," Sale said.
The veteran gave the rookie more advice: "He felt bad about it, and I said we all need help sometimes, too. That's why this is a team game."
Duran, the Phillies top reliever, entered in the seventh inning and ultimately gave up Riley's decisive homer. Mattingly didn't commit to sending Duran back out for his third inning of work if the Phillies left the eighth inning with the lead. He also didn't rule Duran out of Game 2 on Wednesday, as he only threw 27 pitches.
The Phillies' season is on the line Wednesday with their ace Cristopher Sanchez taking the mound.
"I'll always feel good with Christopher out there," Mattingly said. "The playoffs are momentum-based, and it starts with your starting pitcher."