Austin Riley homers again as Braves continue to ramp up in spring training
Matt Olson hit a ball harder and longer but Riley’s ball went over the fence. Go figure.
NORTH PORT, FL - MARCH 13: Austin Riley #27 of the Atlanta Braves reacts after getting a base hit during the spring training game between the New York Yankees and the Atlanta Braves on March 13, 2026 at CoolToday Park in North Port, FL. (Photo by Jeff Robinson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images Atlanta’s bats continued to make some noise here in the Grapefruit League as the Braves slugged their way to yet another win during spring training action. It took a while for the bats to get going but once they did, a couple of the Braves regular made their presence felt in a loud manner.
Jorge Mateo did deliver an RBI single in the second inning but the fifth inning was when things got pretty loud. With a runner on first and one out, Matt Olson appeared to have gotten all of a changeup from Pirates pitcher Nick Dombkowski. Olson crushed it with an EV of 109-mph with a 27 degree launch angle but it only ended up landing at the fence (386 feet away from home plate, to be exact) for an RBI double.
Drake Baldwin scored a run on the play as the Braves went ahead in the contest. Austin Riley came up to the plate right afterwards and he proceeded to earn bragging rights in the dugout by hitting a pitch from Dombkowski over the fence for a two-run dinger. Now granted, Riley’s batted ball was “softer” at 102-mph and shorter at 368 feet but the idea is to hit the ball over the fence and that’s what Riley did for the fourth time this spring.
That gave the Braves a three-run inning as the middle of the lineup continued to look solid with the regular season looming. While this was going on, José Suarez ended up throwing 75 pitches across 5. 1 innings.