Rain Delay Halts Braves-Nationals Rubber Match at Truist Park

The Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals opened a three-game weekend series at Truist Park, with the Braves winning 5-4 on Friday and the Nationals blanking Atlanta 2-0 on Saturday.

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Play was halted at 6:07 p.m. EDT before the top of the seventh inning with Washington leading 1-0. Heavy rain forced the grounds crew to deploy a tarp, conduct patch work and keep the field unplayable, prompting a delay projected to last about one and a half hours, with a tentative restart set for 7:35 p.m. EDT.

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• 6:07 p.m. EDT – Game stopped before the seventh.

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• ~6:37 p.m. EDT – Tarp removed (initial report).

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• 7:35 p.m. EDT – Restart announced.

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The interruption lasted roughly 1.5 hours, with sources citing 1 hour 28 minutes. Atlanta entered the game on a 15-inning run drought. Grant Holmes recorded 10 strikeouts in Saturday’s 2-0 loss, his third double-digit strikeout performance. The Braves sit atop the NL East at 36-17, while Washington is 26-27.

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The Braves’ official Twitter account said the game would resume at 7:35 p.m. EDT if weather permitted and confirmed the tarp was on the field during the delay, promising further updates.

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Reporter Mark Zuckerman criticized the delay management, saying the crew waited too long and the field remained excessively wet, calling it “a clinic in mismanagement.”

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• “Barring any further changes in the weather, today’s game will resume at 7:35 pm ET.” — Braves official Twitter account

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• “The tarp is on the field and we are currently in a rain delay. We will provide updates as soon as they are available.” — Braves official Twitter account

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• “They waited so long to go into delay, it’s too wet to get the tarp across the full infield. First base is drenched. Braves are putting on a clinic in mismanagement today.” — Mark Zuckerman, reporter

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• “Pretty impressive job by the grounds crew. They plan to get started again at 7:35” — @mlbbowman, Twitter user

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One source initially gave no restart time, while later updates set 7:35 p.m. EDT. Delay length is reported as both 1 hour 28 minutes and “about 1.5 hours,” and tarp removal times differ between “half an hour after the stoppage” and “6:45 p.m.”.

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The Braves will be off Monday for Memorial Day before traveling to Boston for a three-game series against the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

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