Corey Yolks hits a go-ahead single as the Braves are swept by the Astros

Atlanta – The Astros didn’t need to make any statements. They have nothing to prove to anyone else in baseball, having won the World Series last year and played in three other Fall Classics in the previous five seasons. Simply put, they are currently one of the most accomplished franchises in the game.

Another slow start to the season – in keeping with the trend of the past three years – and injuries to key players Jose Altuve, Michael Brantley and Lance McCullers Jr. may have shown the Astros were more vulnerable this year. Or maybe they just needed a few weeks to start clicking on all cylinders.

The Astros reminded everyone of their heavyweight status by storming into Truist Field and sweeping past the Braves three games, coming from behind three times in the process. On Sunday, they scored twice in the eighth inning and three times in the ninth to win 5-2—their fourth consecutive win.

Third baseman Alex Bregman said, “I thought we played a lot better baseball in this series than we did.” “I thought it was a great team win today, basically all three. We’ve been playing good baseball and hopefully we can keep it going.”

Yordan Alvarez tied the game with a two-run single in the eighth inning off of AJ Minter, giving him 27 RBIs in 20 games, and rookie Corey Julks tied the game 2-2 in the ninth inning on a tight, two-out-of-one hit by Minter. Bregman added a two-run single to some insurance runs for the Astros, ages 12-2 when he scored at least five runs.

Minter said, “Look at their resume. You could say they’ve been the best team in baseball the last five years. They don’t give up.”

The Astros improved to 5-1 during a difficult period in their schedule, with series wins over the Blue Jays (2-1) and Braves (3-0). Next up is a series in St. Petersburg to face the 19-3 Rays, who are 13-0 at home this year and have the best record in baseball.

“They are a very good football club,” Bregman said. “You can clearly see that with their record, and it’s going to be two good teams playing against each other. We’ve got a bunch of really good teams playing against each other, starting with Toronto and then a really good Braves team. I’m looking forward to getting to Tampa and moving forward.”

The biggest goal of the game was Goulkes against Minter in the ninth. With the game tied at 2 and runners on first, second, and the 4th, Julks pinch hit to catcher Martín Maldonado and trailed on the count, 1-2, before hitting it 2-2 in the middle, and Kyle Tucker scored from second with the go-ahead.

“I was just trying to stay ready, trying to see what the pitcher had and trying to build a solid plan in case I got ahead,” Golicks said. “I was trying to get a good read on it, a feel for it, and I tried to execute.”

The Astros outscored the Braves, 11-0, in the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings in the series. They’ve outscored all opponents, 54-31, going seventh through ninth this year.

Astros manager Dusty Baker said.

Julks, a 27-year-old freshman who was a surprising addition to the Opening Day roster, clapped his hands and pumped his fist as he reached first base in a rare show of emotion.

“Yeah, that kind of thing has come on top of me,” Jolks said, making a cut. “It was definitely an exciting moment.”

Braves starter Max Fried held the Astros scoreless for 6 2/3 innings, allowing three hits, while Astros starter Christian Javier struck out 10 batters in six innings, slugging seven in a row over one period. Bull Houston threw a bad 9 1/3 innings in the Series, with 11 strikeouts and three walks.

“We made a lot of mistakes [on the bases]Becker said. “We were lucky enough to win. Corey messed up some hard passes and came up with that single in the middle. That was big, that insurance run off of Briggy. That was a big streak to win.”