The Atlanta Braves officially kicked off the 2021 Grapefruit League season with an 9-7 walk-off loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.
As you would expect from the spring opener, there was a mix of good and bad for the Braves. Kyle Wright got the start and worked in and out of trouble in the first, but wasn’t as fortunate in the second. Wright would exit after allowing four hits and three runs in 1 1/3 innings. He walked one and struck out one.
Connor Johnstone replaced Wright and immediately gave up a two-run home run to Austin Meadows that bounced off the top of the wall in right center.