ATLANTA — Travis d’Arnaud broke a scoreless tie with a two-run homer in the fourth inning, Dansby Swanson went deep in the eighth, and the Atlanta Braves secured a playoff berth with a 3-2 victory over the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night.
The win, combined with Milwaukee’s 7-5 loss to the New York Mets, clinched Atlanta’s fifth consecutive postseason appearance. The Mets, however, remain a game ahead of the Braves (93-55) in the National League East.
Swanson added his 21st homer, an opposite-field solo shot to right off Kyle Finnegan that sailed 379 feet and padded the lead to 3-1. The Braves have won 10 straight games at home, outscoring opponents 47-15 over this stretch. Atlanta is 52-25 at Truist Park and has the NL’s second-best winning percentage in home games.
Matt Olson singled with out in the fourth before d’Arnaud hit his 18th homer, a 422-foot shot off Erasmo Ramírez (4-2) that made it 2-0.
Charlie Morton (8-6) allowed one run and three hits with three walks and nine strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings. He didn’t give up a hit until Victor Robles singled with one out in the third. Robles advanced on a throwing error by Morton on a pickoff move, but Morton struck out the next two batters to end the threat.