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Tag: Joey Wentz

  • The Good, The Bad, & The Braves: Final Friday of the season ends with rain-delayed 9-3 loss to Pittsburgh

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    Attendance on the final Friday of the season was 34,500, at least before the 49-minute rain delay began at 9:22 p.m.
    Photo by Donnell Suggs/The Atlanta Voice

    The final weekend series of the 2025 Atlanta Braves season began on Friday night at Truist Park. The Braves started the season cold (0-7), got hurt, got hot, got cold again, got colder, had a 10-game win streak towards the end of the year, and then finished the year out of the National League East race. The final opponent of the season, the Pittsburgh Pirates, didn’t have a shot at their respective division crown this season either.

    The Pirates still managed to win the game 9-3. It was only the second time this month that the Pirates scored that many runs in a game. They scored 11 against the A’s on Sept. 21.

    You couldn’t tell Pittsburgh was 21 games under .500 at the start of this game. The Pirates scored four runs in the second inning, highlighted by a two-run home run by left fielder Tommy Pham off Braves starter Joey Wentz (four innings, four earned runs, three strikeouts, eight hits).

    Joey Wentz (above) was the starter for the Atlanta Braves on Friday night. Photo by Kevin D. Liles/Atlanta Braves

    Through the first three innings of the game, the Braves had several opportunities to tie the game or cut into Pittsburgh’s lead, but only managed a Matt Olson solo home run in the first inning.

    With two outs and Brett Wisely and Jurickson Profar on first and third, Braves All-Star first baseman Matt Olson came to the plate in the fourth inning. Pirates starting pitcher Mitch Keller (4.2, six strikeouts, and an earned run) was taken out of the game, and Yohan Ramirez came into the game to put out a potential fire for Pittsburgh.

    Neither team made a dent in the scoreboard during the third, fourth, and fifth innings. In the sixth, the Braves started the inning with a solo homerun from Michael Harris II (3-4 with an RBI), his 20th of the season, that made the score 4-2. The fastball from Pirates pitcher Mike Burrows that Harris II launched over the center field fence came on a 1-2 count. Harris has been more patient during the second half of the season, and it has paid off in a 20-homerun, 20-stolen base season for the Stockbridge High School alum.

    Pittsburgh answered back in the seventh inning with a solo home run (a theme tonight) from Spencer Horwitz to go ahead 5-2 before the rains came at 9:22 p.m., and a 49-minute rain delay ensued.

    Atlanta picked up another run in the seventh inning to make the score 5-3 when Acuna, Jr. singled and Drake Baldwin drove him in from first base with a line-drive single up the middle of the Pirates’ infield.

    The true highlight of the game was the Braves’ bullpen. Hunter Stratton, Joel Payamps, and Dylan Dodd came on in relief, and other than the home run by Horowitz, shut down the Pirates’ bats.

    Pierce Johnson came into the game for the Braves and gave up three runs following a three-run home run by Horowitz. It was Horowitz’s second home run of the game.

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    Donnell Suggs

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  • Pawol breaks gender barrier, earns good reviews for her work behind the plate on historic weekend

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    ATLANTA (AP) — Jen Pawol breezed through Sunday’s Marlins-Braves game as if breaking a gender barrier was just another day on the job.

    Considering Pawol became the first female umpire to work behind the plate in the majors, making unprecedented history appear to be routine was especially impressive.

    “I think Jen did a really nice job,” Miami manager Clayton McCullough said after Atlanta’s 7-1 win over the Marlins.

    “I think she’s very composed back there. She handled and managed the game very well. And big day for her. Big day for Major League Baseball. I congratulated her again on that because it’s quite the accomplishment.”

    It was an impressive cap to a memorable weekend for Pawol. She made history in Saturday’s doubleheader as the first female umpire to work a regular-season game in the majors. She called the bases in the doubleheader before moving behind the plate on Sunday, placing her in the brightest spotlight for an umpire.

    Pawol never showed any indication of being affected by the attention, even while knowing every call would be closely watched. She called balls and strikes with 93% accuracy, according to Ump Scorecards.

    “Congrats to Jen, obviously,” said Braves left-hander Joey Wentz, who earned the win by allowing only one run in 5 1/3 innings.

    Asked about Pawol’s calls, Wentz said, “I try not to focus on the zone, to be honest with you. … I thought it was good though.”

    There were few opportunities for disputes as Wentz and Miami starting pitcher Cal Quantrill combined for only three strikeouts. The first called third strike came in the fifth inning, when Pawol used a fist pump when calling out Miami’s Kyle Stowers on a pitch that was close to the edge of the plate.

    McCullough was seen in the Marlins dugout with his palms held up as if asking about the pitch call. He said after the game it’s not unusual to question a close called strike.

    “Over the course of the game, there are a number of times that you just are going to be asking for clarity on one, if you aren’t sure,” McCullough said. “So it could have been that.”

    The 48-year-old Pawol was called up as a rover umpire, so her next assignment in the majors has not been announced.

    “I wish her the best moving forward as she continues to, I’m sure, hopefully one day be up full time, you know, a permanent big league umpire,” McCullough said.

    Pawol also received positive reviews from Braves manager Brian Snitker, who on Saturday said, “You can tell she knows what she does.”

    Pawol’s work in the minor leagues began in 2016 when she was assigned to the Gulf Coast League. She worked in the Triple-A championship game in 2023 and in spring training games in 2024 and again this year.

    “We certainly didn’t call her up from A ball, right?” Quantrill said. “So yeah, I’m sure she was well prepared. And like I said I think, you know, part of the game moving forward is that if this is normal then we’re going to treat it normal, too. So, you know, I thought it was fine. I think she did she did a quality job. … And yeah, I think she’d be very proud of herself. And, you know, it’s kind of a cool little thing to be part of.”

    Pawol spoke to reporters on Saturday when she said, “The dream actually came true today. I’m still living in it. I’m so grateful to my family and Major League Baseball for creating such an incredible work environment. … I’m just so thankful.”

    Pawol received cheers from fans on both days. On Sunday, some held up “Way to go Jen!” signs.

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

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