By Michael Powell
(Written 10/3/2020)
So how ‘bout them Braves? In case you didn’t hear, on September 30, 2020, the Atlanta Braves faced the Cincinnati Reds to kick off the postseason series. The incredibly long game lasted a grueling 13 innings. This particular match stands out from all the rest because not a single person scored until the 13th inning. That’s right. It was a scoreless game until Freddie Freeman hit a walk-off homerun to score the first and final run of the game.
It spanned a whopping total of 4 hours and 39 minutes and earned the title of the longest scoreless game in MLB postseason history. That’s quite a title. While it was a significant game in MLB history, it was also a very important victory for the Braves. They had not won the first game of a postseason series since 2001. That is nineteen years of losses, but they have finally broken the streak of bad luck.
The game quickly became a pitching contest between Max Fried (Braves) and Trevor Bauer (Reds). Together, the teams managed to strikeout a total of 37 batters, 21 of which were by the Braves. During the entire game, there were only 17 hits in 13 innings. Trevor Bauer was able to pitch about 7 scoreless innings before being taken off the mound. Max Fried on the other hand, pitched seven shutout innings. Obviously, neither team’s offense did amazing, but the Braves eventually pulled ever so slightly ahead to win the first game of the postseason series.