Dominic Smith kept giving the Atlanta Braves a lift Sunday night, driving a home run against the Cleveland Guardians and pushing Atlanta to a 5-0 lead in the fifth inning of a game that was still being played when the story was published. It was Smith’s third homer of the 2026 season.
Smith’s blast lifted his OPS to 1.039 after he entered the game with a.939 mark in 11 games played. The Braves, who came in with a 9-6 record and first place in the National League East, had beaten Cleveland 11-5 on Friday before the Guardians answered with a 6-0 win Saturday.
Atlanta’s lineup has already absorbed early-season injuries, but the club has kept producing with Ronald Acuna Jr. and Matt Olson among the offensive names carrying the load. Smith, 30 years old, is adding an unexpected layer after signing a minor league contract with the Braves in the offseason and turning into a reliable source of production almost immediately.
That makes his run especially notable because Smith has never hit more than 12 home runs in a single major league season. Atlanta’s designated hitters entered Sunday with a.909 OPS, and the numbers around Smith’s start only sharpen the case that the Braves have found an impact bat in a place few expected it.