MLB wrap: Atlanta survives skirmish, loss of Ronald Acuña to top Marlins

Alexis Mansanarez

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MLB wrap: Atlanta survives skirmish, loss of Ronald Acuña to top Marlins image

Atlanta defended Ronald Acuña Jr.'s honor Wednesday night when the rookie exited the game after being hit by the first pitch he saw.

Acuña, who led off each of the first three games in the series with a home run against the Marlins, took a fastball to the elbow from starter José Ureña, causing an enraged Atlanta dugout to storm the field.

Acuña left the game after being hit, and Ureña was ejected.

"I think it's pretty evident what I thought about it," Braves manager Brian Snitker said after the game. "You know, it's a shame. This young man is just playing the game, doing what he loves to do and it's a damn shame what happened that first pitch of the game."

He added: "He is my kid and I am going to protect him."

Even Miami's manager Don Mattingly chimed in: "I don't want to see this kid get hit. He's a great player and he's going to be great for a long time, and for us he's beat us up, but this is not the way we want to handle that situation."

X-rays on Acuña's elbow were negative. Also, on a statistical note, Acuña's streak of five straight games with a home run is intact, due to the fact he was hit by a pitch in his only plate appearance.

Atlanta ended up winning, 5-2, and will continue its 10-game homestand tomorrow with a series against Colorado.

Stud of the night

Dee Gordon stole the show in the Mariners' series finale against the Athletics in Oakland. Gordon hit his second home run of the year in the 12th inning to give Seattle a 2-0 lead. The Mariners held on for the win.

Gordon has been known to come through for the Pacific Northwest squad as five of his last homers gave the M's the lead.

Dud of the night

The Orioles gave up 16 runs on 19 hits against the Mets, and Dylan Bundy surrendered the bulk of it in Baltimore's 16-5 loss. He allowed 11 hits and seven earned runs in 5 1/3 innings of work. Bundy dropped to 7-11 on the season with a 4.99 ERA.

Highlight

Curtis Granderson hit the 10th grand slam of his career against the Royals and with it gave the Blue Jays enough of a lead to hold on to the narrow 6-5 victory. 

What’s next

Cardinals (66-55) at Nationals (60-61), 7:15 p.m. ET — St. Louis is in the postseason hunt and just one game back in the National League wild-card race. The Cardinals, who have won eight straight, can complete the sweep of the Nationals on Thursday and better their odds. They are also in the middle of a seven-game homestand and will soon hit the road to face playoff contenders Dodgers and Rockies.

Alexis Mansanarez