ATLANTA - Ronald Acuña Jr. has found multiple ways to beat the Miami Marlins this year.
The Atlanta Braves slugger only wishes the season series wasn't over.
"Yeah, I definitely think it was an appropriate way and a fitting ending to the way we played the Marlins," he said through a translator. "But I would have much rather hit a home run against them."
Acuña hit an RBI single with two outs in the ninth inning as the Braves won their fifth straight game, finishing off the Marlins 3-2 on Thursday night at SunTrust Park.
Freddie Freeman hit a tying homer in the eighth as the Braves sent Miami to its 12th road loss in a row, the longest streak in the majors this year, to put a bow on their dominance of the season series between the National League East Division's best team and its worst. Atlanta swept this week's three-game set and went 15-4 against the Marlins this year.
At 77-52 overall, the Braves are 30 1/2 games ahead of Miami (45-81) in the standings. Atlanta improved to a season-best 25 games over .500.
Acuña hit .319 with nine homers and 18 RBIs in the season series against the Marlins.
"More so I just wanted to leave it on the field and walk it off," Acuña said. "I wanted us to get the win. I really didn't care independently about which ballplayer did it."
Adeiny Hechavarría opened the bottom of the ninth with a double and later scored on Acuña's single off Ryne Stanek. Freeman's 34th homer this year, an opposite-field drive to left field, also came off Stanek (0-3), who lost his first decision since being acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays at the trade deadline.
Stanek threw a fastball down and away to Freeman.
"I didn't think it was that bad of a pitch," Stanek said. "He just put a good swing on it."
Atlanta reliever Mark Melancon (5-2) faced four batters in the ninth to earn the win.
Braves starter Mike Soroka hasn't won a decision in seven straight starts. The 22-year-old All-Star was still hard to solve, allowing a single in the second and another in the sixth before Brian Anderson and Neil Walker singled in the seventh and both scored to make it 2-1 on Starlin Castro's double.
Soroka, tied for the second-best ERA in the majors at 2.41, allowed no walks and struck out five in seven innings. It marked the fourth time in five starts he has pitched that deep into a game.
"It's affirmation to me that I'm not really taking the foot off the pedal," Soroka said. "Staying aggressive and keeping with what's working, too."
Marlins starter Sandy Alcantara gave up Hechavarria's RBI single in the second, and he allowed three hits overall in seven innings. He held the top four batters in Atlanta's lineup - Acuña, Ozzie Albies, Freeman and Josh Donaldson - to a collective 0-for-12.
Alcantara took a shutout into the eighth inning of his last start against Atlanta on Aug. 10.
Fifteen of Freeman's homers have either tied the game or given Atlanta the lead this season, and he became the first Brave since Hall of Famer Chipper Jones in 2007 to have a season with 100 RBIs and 100 runs scored.
Marlins first baseman Walker snared Rafael Ortega's liner in the second to double up Hechavarría and prevent a runner from scoring from third.
Miami has allowed a homer in 23 straight games, the fourth-longest streak in MLB history and three off the mark shared by the 2017 Baltimore Orioles, the 2004 Seattle Mariners and the 2001 Houston Astros.
On the injury recovery front, Atlanta shortstop Dansby Swanson (right foot contusion) was 1-for-2 with an RBI through the first four innings of his first rehab game at Single-A Rome on Thursday. Also, rookie Austin Riley (right knee sprain) ran without pain before the game and will report to Rome on Friday.
Friday night the Braves open a three-game road series against the New York Mets. Mike Foltynewicz (4-5, 6.09) is scheduled to start for Atlanta. Jacob deGrom (8-7, 2.61) is the probable pitcher for the Mets.