Braves survive scary ninth inning, hold off Phillies 2-1

ATLANTA (AP) — A dominant late-September performance by Charlie Morton left the Atlanta Braves hoping it was a preview of October postseason starts to come.

Morton threw seven scoreless innings, Jorge Soler hit a two-run single and the Braves escaped a ninth-inning jam to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 2-1 on Tuesday night and move closer to their fourth consecutive NL East title.

“It’s exactly why we hired him, pretty much,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “The moment doesn’t get too big, I know that, for him.”

Atlanta reduced its magic number to three games in the division race and extended its lead to 3 1/2 games over the second-place Phillies, who no longer control their fate with five games left. The loss eliminated Philadelphia from contention for an NL wild card.

“We have to win out,” Phillies first baseman Brad Miller said. “I think it’s cut and dried.”

Even winning out may not be enough for Philadelphia, which still needs the New York Mets to beat the Braves in the final regular-season series.

“You’ve got to keep grinding,” Phillies manager Joe Girardi said. “You’ve got to find a way to win tomorrow and then you go from there. ... Tomorrow is not out of our hands, and that’s what we need to focus on.”

Will Smith survived a wild ninth inning, allowing an unearned run, for his 36th save in 42 chances.

Smith walked Bryce Harper leading off and Guillermo Heredia, inserted in the game for his defense in the inning, chased down J.T. Realmuto’s liner to center. Pinch-hitter Matt Vierling’s liner to left field glanced off the glove of Edwin Rosario for a two-base error, putting runners on second and third.

Andrew McCutchen loaded the bases with an intentional walk, Didi Gregorius had a sacrifice fly and, with...

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