Marcell Ozuna had three hits, including a three-run homer in the first inning, sparking the Atlanta Braves to an 11-3 victory over the Los Angeles Angels Saturday night in Anaheim, Calif.
Ramon Laureano and Whit Merrifield also homered, and Michael Harris II chipped in with three hits for an Atlanta offense that tallied 12 in all.
It was all overkill for Braves starter Chris Sale (14-3), who gave up two runs on six hits and two walks in six innings, striking out 10 and making 95 pitches.
The Braves jumped on top early against Angels starter Griffin Canning (4-11), starting with a double by Harris to lead off the game. Austin Riley moved Harris to third with a single, and Ozuna hit an 89 mph slider on the seventh pitch of the at-bat over the fence in right center for his 36th homer of the season.
Harris’ RBI single in the second inning made it 4-0, before the Braves broke the game open with a five-run fifth, knocking Canning out of the game.
Merrifield led off the inning with a solo homer, and Harris followed with a single. One out later, Ozuna walked, spelling the end of the night for Canning.
Angels reliever Mike Baumann entered and got the second out, but he yielded a two-run double to Travis d’Arnaud and a homer to Laureano to put the Braves comfortably ahead at 9-0.
Sale sailed through five innings, allowing just three singles before the Angels got to him for two runs in the sixth.
Angels first baseman Nolan Schanuel, who had two hits off Sale and three in the game, singled with one out and scored on a double by Kevin Pillar, who took third on the throw home. Pillar then scored on a wild pitch, cutting the Angels deficit to 9-2.
Atlanta added two more runs in the seventh, both runs scoring on a throwing error by shortstop Zach Neto on a potential double-play grounder.
Schanuel led off the eighth with a double and scored on Pillar’s single.
–Field Level Media