Nobody loves the month of July more than Austin Riley. Since 2021, the Braves third baseman has hit .344 with 27 homers and 68 RBIs in 69 July baseball games.
Austin Riley in the month of July since 2021:
69 G, .344 AVG, 27 HR, 68 RBI pic.twitter.com/tyPVl8poL4
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 23, 2023
This July actually started out quite slow for Riley, however. Through the first 11 games of the month, he hit just .196 with one homer and a double, resulting in an unsightly .528 OPS. But in the last five games, Riley has managed to do a complete 180, blasting six homers with a .476 batting average.
The two-time All-Star has now homered in five straight games, tying a Braves franchise record.
Prior to Austin Riley, this was last accomplished by Ronald Acuña Jr. in 2018.
Other #Braves w/ 5G HR streak:
Rogers Hornsby (1928)
Eddie Miller (1940)
Joe Adcock (1956)
Hank Aaron (1966)
Jeff Burroughs (1977)
Ozzie Virgil (1987)
Chipper Jones (2004)
Brian McCann (2006) https://t.co/PWYqDaPg59— Grant McAuley (@grantmcauley) July 23, 2023
Over the past five games, Riley has seen his home run total rise from 16 to 22. With one more today, he’ll own a franchise record. Riley also has seen his RBIs rise from 45 to 61, and his OPS is over 60 points higher than it was at the start of the week, going from .763 to .827. This is a guy that once again looks like a perennial NL MVP candidate, a scary thought for the rest of the National League.
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Photographer: Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire
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