PHILADELPHIA - Spencer Howard dreamed of tossing a shutout in front of friends and family in his Major League Baseball debut. He settled for a few hundred cardboard cutouts in the stands of Citizens Bank Park and an early exit on the mound.
"The cardboard cutouts actually made a difference, surprisingly," the 24-year-old right-hander said of settling his nerves.
Hey, at least they couldn't boo.
Ronald Acuña Jr. homered twice and Freddie Freeman also went deep to spoil Howard's anticipated start and lead the Atlanta Braves to a doubleheader sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies with an 8-0 win on Sunday.
Acuña also homered in Atlanta's 5-2 victory in the first of two seven-inning contests, one of MLB's novelties for its shortened season amid the coronavirus pandemic. The 22-year-old outfielder had four hits in the second game and made it the fourth multihomer game of his career.
"I don't think Ronald needed anybody else on his team today," Freeman said. "He kind of took care of everything. Pretty amazing to watch. He is a talent that doesn't come around very often in this game. It seems like he does more special things every single year. "
The Phillies had waited since the restart to send Howard (0-1) to the mound and show why MLB.com had him ranked as a top-40 overall prospect in the minor leagues.
Phillies slugger Bryce Harper proclaimed in July that if Howard wasn't in the starting rotation by the end of the first week of the season "there's a problem. That's all I'll say." There was a hiccup: Howard's bid to crack the rotation was derailed for service time reasons. The Phillies kept him on their taxi squad in Allentown, Pennsylvania, for enough days to delay his potential free agency until after the 2026 season.
His first inning was fine, with Howard striking out Marcell Ozuna swinging on a nasty 85 mph slider that had a gaggle of Phillies fans outside the ballpark blowing air horns and banging cowbells in delight. Howard, a second-round pick in the 2017 draft, flashed more poise and promise in a neat 13-pitch second inning.
Freeman, though, hit a two-run homer in the third, and Acuña had a solo shot to the opposite field in right for a 3-0 lead. Howard struck out Ozuna in the fifth, and the designated hitter snapped his bat after he slammed it in frustration.
Howard allowed four runs and seven hits in 4 2/3 innings.
"I wouldn't say I felt sharp, just a little out of sync with my mechanics," he said.
Atlanta's Max Fried (3-0) was fantastic in his first three starts of the season (2.04 ERA, 15 strikeouts), and he hummed along against the Phillies until he loaded the bases with two outs in the fifth.
Phillies fans nearly 460 feet away chanted "Let's go, Harper!", but Fried retired him on a fly ball in a lefty-versus-lefty matchup to escape the jam and send the Braves on their way to the victory. He struck out six in five innings.
Acuña hit a two-run shot off Trevor Kelley for a 6-0 lead in the sixth, becoming the first Brave with three homers in a doubleheader since David Justice in 1990.
"He's hitting those balls like a left-handed pull hitter, and they just keep carrying" Braves manager Brian Snitker said. "Good for his confidence. It's been in the works for him for a while now."
Acuña hit a two-run homer and Adam Duvall had a three-run double to lead the Braves in the opener.
The Braves scored five runs in the fifth, when starter Vince Velasquez left with a runner on base and Acuña went deep off Deolis Guerra (1-1) for a 2-1 lead. Acuña's shot into left was greeted with an enthusiastic "That a boy!" out of the Braves dugout that could have been heard in the empty seats.
The Phillies used four pitchers in the inning, and their beleaguered bullpen - coming off a rare sharp outing in a combined shutout in the series opener Saturday night after a rainout Friday - was rocked again. Duvall hit a three-run double just below the 334-foot sign in left off Adam Morgan for a 5-1 lead.
Tyler Matzek (2-0) pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings for the win, and Mark Melancon worked a scoreless ninth for his third save of the year.
Braves starter Huascar Ynoa went just 2 1/3 innings, and the Braves used five relievers. Atlanta lefty Will Smith got out of the biggest jam when he retired Didi Gregorius on a pop-up with two runners on to end the fifth.
If Velasquez continues to struggle, he could find himself in the bullpen if Howard emerges as a reliable starter.
"It was not really a solid day as far as commanding all the pitches," said Velasquez, who threw 76 pitches in four-plus innings at a laborious pace.
Phillies manager Joe Girardi said Velasquez would make his next start as scheduled.