Washington Nationals vs Atlanta Braves Match Player Stats On Jun 02, 2021

Catcher Yan Gomes broke a tie game with a long solo homer in the eighth inning to help the visiting Washington Nationals defeat the Atlanta Braves 5-3.

Gomes hit a 2-2 cutter from reliever A.J. Minter (1-2) into the third row of the center field stands for his fifth home run. He was 2-for-4 and is 5-for-13 with three RBIs in the series.

The Nationals added an insurance run in the ninth on Trea Turner's RBI single off Chris Martin.

The winning pitcher was Daniel Hudson (4-1), who allowed the Braves to tie the game in the seventh but was the beneficiary of Gomes' home run. He pitched 1 1/3 innings, gave up one hit and struck out three. Brad Hand pitched a scoreless ninth and earned his ninth save.

The Nationals got a stellar effort from starter Jon Lester, who was working on three days rest. The 37-year-old veteran pitched 5 2/3 innings and allowed one run on five hits, two walks and three strikeouts. Lester retired 11 straight batters but was unhappy getting pulled after walking Ehire Adrianza with two outs in the sixth.

Atlanta starter Drew Smyly was removed after pitching 4 1/3 innings. He allowed three runs on seven hits, two walks and six strikeouts.

The Nationals scored a run in the top of the second inning on Starlin Castro's RBI single, but the Braves answered in the bottom half on Dansby Swanson's ninth home run. That extended Swanson's hitting streak to 11 games.

Washington took the lead in the fifth when Juan Soto drilled a 437-foot homer to center field. The two-run homer, his sixth, came on an 0-2 pitch and was the 14th homer allowed by Smyly in 46 2/3 innings.

The Braves tied the game in the seventh when Ozzie Albies ripped a two-out double off the right-field wall to score Abraham Almonte and Freddie Freeman.

--Field Level Media