Braves Outlast Orioles 3-2 in 11 on Weiss' IBB Gambit
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- Walt Weiss ordered an unconventional intentional walk with men on first and second in the bottom of the 11th, setting up righty Tyler Kinley against right-handed catcher Sam Huff, who grounded out to end the game.
- The Atlanta Braves beat the Baltimore Orioles 3-2 in 11 innings after Austin Riley led off the 11th with an RBI double to break the 2-2 tie.
- Ozzie Albies let a grounder through his legs in the ninth to help the Orioles tie it 2-2, but made a diving stop on the very next batter to throw out the go-ahead run at first.
- Matt Olson caught Gunnar Henderson's liner at first base and doubled off Pete Alonso to escape a bases-loaded, nobody-out jam in the 10th, with Weiss deploying a five-man infield for the play.
- Sam Huff was 4-for-32 with 19 strikeouts on the season, and Baltimore's top two catchers were on the injured list, leaving no hitters left on the bench by the 11th.
- The intentional walk was the third bases-loaded IBB of the season; the previous two — Yordan Alvarez walked by the Rangers on July 12 and Pete Crow-Armstrong walked by the Pirates on Friday — both backfired when the next batter delivered a key hit.
Why it matters: Weiss' decision to set up the right-vs-right matchup against a backup catcher hitting .125 with 19 strikeouts earned the win, but the same IBB-with-men-on-first-and-second gambit backfired twice this season, including for the Pirates just two days earlier. Baltimore's depleted bench — its top two catchers on the injured list — gave Weiss the cushion to make the unconventional call.
