Updated

Updated · Yahoo Sports · Oct 4

Austin Wells Ends Drew Rasmussen's 8th-Inning No-Hit Bid, Gets Thrown Out at Third

Updated

Updated · Yahoo Sports · Oct 4

Austin Wells Ends Drew Rasmussen's 8th-Inning No-Hit Bid, Gets Thrown Out at Third

Q: After Skubal's 101 mph heat in 100-degree weather, can the Braves' offense recover, or is the series already slipping away?

The Braves can recover, but the series is clearly tilting toward Los Angeles after Game 1. Skubal’s outing was more than a normal postseason win. In 100-degree heat, he touched 101.1 mph, averaged 98.1 with the four-seamer, struck out seven, and retired 15 straight after a leadoff single. That showed Atlanta how small its margin is against a Dodgers club that already entered the series with the deeper, healthier roster and a major starting-pitching edge. Still, Game 1 did not show a hopeless Braves offense. Sean Murphy took Skubal deep, and Ozzie Albies’ two-run homer in the ninth cut the margin to 5-3. Atlanta also beat Los Angeles five times in six regular-season meetings, so there is some evidence this lineup can score against this staff when it gets the right matchup. The bigger concern is less the offense than the overall series setup. In a best-of-five, teams that win Game 1 at home in the Division Series advance about 75% of the time. Atlanta also came in with pitching uncertainty behind Chris Sale and Tyler Mahle, and the Braves’ own preview path to an upset depended on timely hitting and near-perfect run prevention. They did not get enough of either once the Dodgers’ bullpen game cracked. So the offense can rebound, especially if Acuña, Olson and Riley produce more consistently, but the Braves now need a fast response in Game 2. If they fall behind 2-0, Skubal’s heat will look like the moment the series truly turned.

3 articles · Updated · Yahoo Sports · Oct 4

Two outs into the eighth, Austin Wells lined a double just inside the right-field line for the Yankees' first hit, ending Drew Rasmussen's no-hit bid with New York trailing 1-0.
Wells then tried for third instead of holding at second, and Tampa Bay's relay from Victor Mesa Jr. to Richie Palacios to Junior Caminero cut him down to end the inning.
Rasmussen allowed only that hit and two walks through eight innings while striking out 10, keeping the Yankees' offense in check after its 18-2 wild-card rout of Boston.
Jonathan Aranda's third-inning solo homer off Gerrit Cole stood as the only run as the AL East champion Rays took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five Division Series.