Austin Riley homers twice, Braves blank Phillies in series opener

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 17: Austin Riley #27 of the Atlanta Braves hits a three-run home run in the second inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on April 17, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) | Getty Images The Atlanta Braves entered Friday’s series opener against the Philadelphia Phillies hot. The Phillies…did not.

That showed up on the field as the Braves jumped out to a big lead early and coasted to a 9-0 throttling of the Phillies in the first game of the three-game set at Citizens Bank Park, earning their major-league-leading fourth shutout of the season. Martín Pérez and Jose Suarez combined for the shutout (a truly crazy thing to write), giving up just six hits and three walks while stranding eight runners. Austin Riley sparked the offense with a pair of homers, giving him three in the last two games after he had none through 18 games this season.

The game didn’t seem to be going down this path when both teams had prime scoring chances in their respective first innings. The Braves loaded the bases with no outs, while Philadelphia did so with one out. Atlanta struck for two runs on a groundout and a Mike Yastrzemski infield single before Pérez escaped the jam to keep the Phillies off the board.

As it turned out, that set the tone for the game. The Braves took command in the second inning when they plated four runs, all with two outs. Matt Olson’s RBI single made it 3-0 before Riley’s first homer doubled that advantage to 6-0, bringing out the boo birds in Philly.