Atlanta erupted for four runs in the 10th inning Friday night at Camden Yards.
Atlanta and Baltimore were locked at 3-3 through nine innings Friday night before the Braves broke the game open in the 10th.
A throwing error on Jim Jarvis's grounder allowed the automatic runner to score, giving Atlanta a 4-3 lead, and then Matt Olson crushed a three-run homer off reliever Andrew Kittredge that stretched the advantage to 7-3.
Baltimore mounted a three-run rally in the bottom of the frame, including a two-run shot from Christian Encarnacion-Strand, but Dylan Lee struck out Sam Huff to seal a 7-6 victory at Camden Yards.
It was Olson's 27th home run of the season, and the first baseman left no doubt about where this one ranked among them.
"We've had some good, tight wins," Olson said. "But that's obviously a great one."
Hernandez Kept Atlanta Alive
The game might never have reached extras without Elieser Hernandez, who made his Braves debut with three scoreless innings of relief spanning the seventh through ninth.
Manager Walt Weiss needed only two words to sum up the performance.
"He was a hero tonight," Weiss said.
Hernandez embraced the moment in his own way.
"Just stay attacking and aggressive," he said."I looked at it as, you know, 'This is mine,' and I couldn't give it away."
Hernandez escaped a jam during the ninth to force extras and give the offense one more chance, capping a debut that quieted any doubts about what he could bring in a high-leverage spot.
His three shutout frames kept the Braves alive after Drake Baldwin's solo homer in the eighth off Rico Garcia had tied the game at 3-3 and given the lineup a jolt of confidence heading into extras.
Baldwin, who hit .274 with 19 home runs as a rookie in 2025, connected for his 20th of 2026 on the swing that kept Atlanta's hopes alive, and Hernandez made sure those hopes survived long enough for Olson to finish the job in the 10th.
A July to Remember
Olson has been one of the most productive hitters in the National League this month, and his .872 OPS through early July has only climbed since.
The first baseman has turned a solid first half into something more dangerous at the plate, and the Braves front office has already signaled that adding pitching depth before the trade deadline remains a priority.
Weiss pointed to the bigger view after the game.
"There are some good things happening right now," he said. "It's well documented, the tough June we had, but after the break, we've really turned it around and we're playing well in pretty much all phases."
Atlanta sits atop the NL East at 61-42, and wins built on late-inning comebacks and shutdown relief have become a signature of the team's second-half surge.
The Braves have continued to add arms as they push toward October, and Friday night showed why the bullpen remains the area most in need of reinforcement.
The starting rotation has steadied itself in recent weeks, but the middle relief corps is thin enough that Hernandez's performance carried real weight for a team looking to add arms before August 3.
