Marcell Ozuna hits 1 of 4 Braves homers in 9-2 rout of Rays

ATLANTA (AP) — Marcell Ozuna had three hits, including one of the Braves’ four home runs, and Atlanta’s offensive resurgence continued in a 9-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday.

Jarred Kelenic, in his first at-bat for the Braves after a hamstring injury against Michael Harris II, finished 3-for-5 with a homer and two RBIs, while Austin Riley hit a three-run homer in the eighth inning. Matt Olson hit his 11th home run of the season.

“He can handle that role,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said of Kelenic leading the way. “He can run, he can steal a base, he’s a really good outfielder. … He did what we brought him in to do. I was more than satisfied with his defensive abilities. Now we’re going to ask him to do a little more than we thought. If he wants to do it, he’s ready now.

Charlie Morton (4-3) allowed one run on three hits over six innings while striking out eight, walking two and hitting two batters. He also picked a runner off first.

“It’s a good game for me if I can make my shots,” Morton said.

Ryan Pepiot (4-4) suffered his first road loss of the season for the Rays, who have lost seven of nine. He allowed five runs on six hits, walked three and struck out four.

Pepiot started with four scoreless innings, then ran into trouble with two outs in the fifth. The Braves hit him for three homers and he couldn’t get out of the inning.

“I thought he threw the ball really, really well,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “The change to Kelenic, I think it was a 3-2 change, he was looking for a strike right there. Kelenic swung the bat well today and grabbed them. After that fastball, (Pépiot) could certainly be gassed in the condition he was throwing. He kind of knocked down some throws and they kind of made us pay.

Ozuna’s home run came during the barrage of three home runs that opened the game. With the Rays leading 1-0, Kelenic lifted one to right field that barely cleared the wall. After Ozzie Albies walked, Ozuna hit his homer 423 feet to center, then Olson followed with a solo shot.

Ozuna’s two RBIs gave him an NL-leading 62 for the season.

“Once we got ahead and knowing I had the big guys behind me, we can capitalize with a big inning there,” Kelenic said.

The Braves’ offense, the majors’ most prolific in 2023, struggled in May and early June, and the team hoped the bats would warm up depending on the weather. On Saturday, the temperature in Atlanta reached 94 and the Braves had their first four-homer game since April 19. They have scored 22 points in their last three games after scoring just 16 in the previous seven games.

The Rays scored in the first inning when Josh Lowe drove in Brandon Lowe with a sacrifice fly. Randy Arozarena added a solo homer in the ninth. Braves pitchers combined to strike out 12.

Rays: Infielder José Caballero missed Saturday’s game after being removed in the third inning Friday night due to illness. Manager Kevin Cash said Caballero still felt “under the weather.”

Braves: Harris has a Grade 2 hamstring strain according to Snitker. The team placed him on the 10-day IL, but he is expected to stay there longer. The Braves promoted veteran outfielder Ramón Laureano and started him in right field. Laureano was released by the Guardians in May after hitting just .143 in 31 games, but he hit .362 with Triple-A Gwinnett in 14 games. He was 1 for 4 on Saturday.

Braves rookie RHP Hurston Waldrep (0-1, 17.18) will make his second Major League start against Rays RHP Zach Eflin (3-4, 4.06) in the series finale on Sunday.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb