Orlando Arcia sent a message with his go-ahead, three-run moonshot to lift the Atlanta Braves past the Los Angeles Dodgers very late on Saturday night.
Just look at how incredibly awesome Orlando Arcia's three-run blast from all angles was to help propel the Atlanta Braves past the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 3 of their massive road series.
Atlanta improved 90-45 on the season thanks to Arcia's late-game heroics. The Braves have taken the first three games of four in Chavez Ravine vs. the Boys in Blue. This has given Atlanta a staggering seven-game lead over the Dodgers for the best record in the National League. Time is on Atlanta's side to end up with the best record in all of baseball to secure home-field advantage in the playoffs.
This big fly in the top of the 10th inning gave the Braves a 4-1 lead, as they would go on to win, 4-2.
This moment is just one of the many reasons why Arcia was the National League's starting shortstop at the 2023 MLB All-Star Game in Seattle. His defense and offense have been such a stellar combo.
Orlando Arcia's eventual game-winning HR lifted Braves past Dodgers
Since about Memorial Day, Braves Country has been well aware of how special of a season Atlanta has been having. Although the team has cooled off a bit in the second half, the Braves are having a West Coast road trip for the ages. They took two of three from the San Francisco Giants, swept the Colorado Rockies and are now on the verge of doing the improbable with a four-game sweep of L.A.
Expectations are sky-high in The ATL for this team, but anything short of an NL pennant and probably a second World Series championship in three seasons will be met with great disappointment by Braves Country. This is the best offense I have seen in decades. The starting pitching staff is coming together and if the bullpen can hold up, it is hard seeing someone beat them in a postseason series.
Ultimately, we still have about a month left in the regular season, so a lot can change between now and then. For now, Atlanta is on a shortlist of about six teams who can realistically hoist Rob Manfred's precious piece of metal in late October, or very early November. Let's just sit back and enjoy how much the 2023 Braves dig the long ball. They are must-see television on a nightly basis.
Atlanta's ability to get offensive production out of all nine spots in the batting order is hard to top.