Walt Weiss Declares Drake Baldwin Officially Back After Historic Five-Hit Game

Walt Weiss waited more than a month to say what he finally said on Sunday afternoon.

Drake Baldwin went 5-for-5 with two home runs in the Braves' 8-5 win over the Rangers at Truist Park, a performance that sealed the series and pushed Atlanta to 57-41 atop the National League East, three games ahead of Philadelphia.

The young catcher missed close to a month with an oblique injury earlier this summer, and his manager watched Sunday's outburst and decided the comeback question had been answered for good.

Baldwin finished the series 10-for-14 with three home runs and eight runs batted in.

"Baldwin, he's back. He's back to form. I think it's official now," Weiss said after the game. "He was on an MVP-type trajectory before he got hurt, and he's looking like that again."

The numbers support the praise, since Baldwin is hitting .276 with 18 home runs and 54 RBIs this season despite the lost month.

The afternoon carried some history with it too, as MLB.com noted he became the first Braves catcher with a 5-for-5 game since Johnny Estrada in 2004.

"I was proud of myself not really taking an at-bat off and having a plan," Baldwin said. "Obviously, the results showed up today."

Baldwin was not the only one making a statement, because Austin Riley homered twice off Nathan Eovaldi and drove in four runs in his first multi-homer game since April 17.

The third baseman has fought his swing all year, entering Sunday with 10 home runs and a .211 average that sit well below his usual standard, numbers he addressed openly after voicing frustration over his slow start back in May.

"The first half beat me up pretty good," Riley said. "Just needed to clear my head."

He spent the All-Star break resting at home with his family rather than grinding in the cage, and he has gone 6-for-12 with three home runs in the three games since play resumed.

Sunday marked the 21st series win of the season for Atlanta, matching its total from all of last year, and it capped a turnaround from the rough stretch Weiss defended his offense through earlier in the summer.

The schedule now brings a real test, with the Padres arriving Monday night to open a four-game set at Truist Park.

Ronald Acuna Jr. has been rehabbing at Triple-A Gwinnett and is expected to rejoin the lineup this week, per Mark Bowman, which would hand a deep roster its biggest bat back just as a dangerous late-inning bullpen keeps closing out wins behind the surging offense.

San Diego comes to town fresh off a 19-run outburst in Kansas City, so the pitching staff will be tested immediately, and the four-game set gives Atlanta a chance to widen a division lead it has spent the whole summer protecting.