Atlanta, GA

Mariners win battle of dueling no-hitters over Atlanta, 2-1

Published

2 years ago

April 30, 2024

Mariners win battle of dueling no-hitters over Atlanta, 2-1

We all sign up for baseball knowing that it isn’t fair. You can square up a ball perfectly and have it go for an out; you can throw a gem on the mound and still get tagged with an “L.” Perhaps nothing is more frustrating in baseball than being a pitcher and seeing how your hours of hard work can be undone with one swing.

Tonight Bryce Miller outdueled Braves starter Max Fried in every way except, unfortunately, where it counted—on the scoreboard—and the beautiful sand castle he’d spent hours painstakingly building threatened to collapse under the tidal wave of the Braves’ offense. However, Miller beat back the current, showcasing just how much he’s grown since the last time he faced these Braves, and the Mariners came through with just enough offense—not enough to give Miller a win, mind you, because as aforementioned, baseball is not fair, but enough that the Mariners were able to bank another win, which is all anyone—including Miller—really cares about.

The last time Miller faced Atlanta, in May of 2023, it was just his fourth start, but the rookie held the powerful Braves lineup at bay into the seventh inning, allowing just one run to score, working around a little traffic on the bases and striking out four. He left after allowing a leadoff base hit in the seventh and then walking a runner; both inherited runners would later score.

Tonight, Miller bested himself, this time working through the seventh inning, striking out 10 and carrying a perfect game into the sixth inning, and a no-hitter into the seventh. In a night that was maybe under-billed as a pitching duel between two of the game’s brightest young starters, Miller bested Fried in innings pitches—seven to Fried’s six—and issued just one walk to Fried’s two. He collected more whiffs, and struck out 10 to Fried’s 7. But when Miller departed the game after the seventh, he was in line for the loss, with the Mariners down 1-0.

“Last year, if the fastball wasn’t working or if I gave up a couple hits on it, it was like, I guess I’m gonna keep throwing it and see what happens,” said Miller postgame. “But now I’ve got other stuff, and third time through, they were seeing stuff they hadn’t seen, or they hadn’t seen much of. So it’s big getting into the back half of the game.”

“That’s about as good an outing we’ve seen Bryce maybe ever have,” said Scott Servais postgame. “That was some kind of electric fastball he was featuring tonight.”

Miller went nine up and nine down in the first three innings with five strikeouts: two in the first, one in the second, and two in the third, in a nice little palindromic run. He threw seven of nine first-pitch strikes and demonstrated arguably the best command over his four-seam fastball we’ve seen yet this season. It was a vintage* (*early 2023) Bryce Miller performance, where he leaned heavily on his four-seamer, but sprinkled in his fun new toys of the two-seamer, sweeper, and splitter to pick up outs on the ground and at the plate.

Miller’s one bobble came in the seventh inning; with the perfecto gone on a walk to Travis d’Arnaud in the sixth that was just as quickly erased by former Mariner Jarred Kelenic grounding into a double play on the sweeper, Miller’s new favorite toy to deploy against lefties, Ronald Acuña Jr. opened the seventh inning with a base hit on a fastball away that Dylan Moore, playing in place of the injured J.P. Crawford, couldn’t quite corral. He then rudely stole second and third. I thought the South was all about manners?

Miller then made one of his few mistakes of the night, leaving a fastball in the middle of the plate to Ozzie Albies that would have scored Acuña from first even if he’d been wearing one of those boots they put on cars with unpaid fines. It had the makings of a kind of meltdown inning that plagued Miller at times last season. But Bryce Miller 2.0, fully loaded with new accessories, is a different animal than 2023 Bryce Miller. He came back to strike out Austin Riley looking at a perfectly located slider, nailed Matt Olson with a slider in the same location for another backwards K, and got Marcell Ozuna lunging after a slider for an easy flyout. Deep South, meet Big Tex.

Servais called those the biggest three outs of the game. “That just shows me so much where he’s at, maturity-wise. So many guys, when they have a night like that going and it starts to get away from them, they just lose it, and he didn’t, which is a credit to him.”

“Bryce Miller, he’s a unique cat. It’s Big Tex. It’s always Big Tex. He doesn’t get too high, he doesn’t get too low, and you saw that play out tonight.”

Meanwhile, the Mariners did what they could against Max Fried, created in a lab to be a nightmare for the spin/breaking ball-allergic 2024 Mariners. They did work some counts: Rodríguez and Haniger both worked full counts in the first, and Mitch Garver actually worked a walk in the second, but he was undone by Cal Raleigh swinging through a fastball for a strikeout, Ty France lunging after a curveball for a strikeout, and Jorge Polanco actually making contact but for a soft popout. Polanco also gets a star for a ten-pitch at-bat in the fourth which ended in a strikeout, and it tells you a little bit about the quality of these other at-bats that a ten-pitch strikeout is worthy enough to note. Credit where it’s due, though: Fried’s pitch count was pushing into the sixties in the bottom of the fourth, while Bryce Miller was at a trim 46 (with 33 strikes!) headed into the top of the fifth.

However, even with Fried out of the game, the Mariners went down quietly against Pierce Johnson in the seventh, but were able to get a little traction against Joe Jiménez in the eighth when Ty France led off with a walk. With a righty on the mound, the Mariners finally let Josh Rojas out of his platoon cage, and he of course immediately got a hit and ended the no-hitter. Right now Rojas is serving the role of 2023 J.P. Crawford, bailing this team out when they desperately need people on base, and he needs to be in every game regardless of handedness.

The Mariners actually had Jiménez on the ropes, but right after Rojas broke up the no-hitter (which would have been that most grotesque of creatures, the combined no-hitter), Luis Urías struck out. I wasn’t listening, but the sound Dave Sims made was described to me as “soul-hollowing.” However, pinch-hitter Luke Raley kept hope alive by sneaking a single through virtually the same spot, loading the bases for Julio and Haniger with one out. Surely one of them could cash in the run, right? Surely not, as Julio went after a slider and popped it out to shallow left field, and Mitch Haniger—who has quietly been on a pretty rough run these past couple weeks—struck out, lunging after a slider that ended up in the other batter’s box.

At this point, although it did not feel fair to Bryce Miller to hand him this loss, it felt fair that the Mariners would lose this game. They’d had chances, and squandered those chances. Miller had been better than Fried, but the Mariners hitters had not been better than the Braves hitters. Sometimes, that’s just how it goes.

Until it isn’t.

Braves closer Raisel Iglesias was unavailable today, having pitched yesterday, so Atlanta brought in lefty A.J. Mintner. Jorge Polanco greeted him by leaping on the first fastball he saw, lacing a base hit down the left field line. That brought up Mitch Garver, who’s been scuffling at the plate, to put it mildly. Garver got ahead 3-0, before taking a pair of pitches—one borderline, one less so—to make it a full count.

Then Minter left a cutter in the middle of the plate. And this time, Garver did not miss it.

“I think he can breathe now,” said Servais. “He got a big hit. And once you get a big hit with a new team, it does help.”

That was Garver’s first career walkoff home run at any level, and he described it as a “relief”—not just to have ended the game, but also to have contributed during a time when he’s been scuffling at the plate.

“In a time when things aren’t going my way and I’m not feeling quite like myself, to be able to come through for the team in any way shape or form, that’s a huge W.”

Tonight Miller’s sterling outing was threatened to be undone by one swing; at the same time, Garver’s frustrating stretch of play was also undone by one good swing. It’s a good reminder that as frustrating as baseball can be, as Garver says,

“The game gives back to you at times, too.”

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Atlanta, GA

South Carolina women’s basketball: Madina Okot selected by Atlanta

Published

3 hours ago

April 14, 2026

Press Room

South Carolina women’s basketball: Madina Okot selected by Atlanta

Madina Okot was selected by the Atlanta Dream with the 13th pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft on Monday night.

In Atlanta, Okot will team up with former Gamecocks Allisha Gray and Te-Hina Paopao. Atlanta lost Brittney Griner in free agency, so the Dream need a big to replace her in the lineup. In coach Karl Smesko’s offensive system, everyone has the green light to shoot, so Okot’s three-point shooting ability should be an asset.

Okot said she met with Atlanta and another team before the draft.

“They talked about my skills, my versatility, and just being able to contribute to the team by rebounding, playing defense, finishing, doing some little things to help the team win,” she said.

NEW! Message board for South Carolina Women’s Basketball! 🏀

Okot should have strong fan support. Atlanta is the closest WNBA team to Columbia, and the Dream draws a lot of Gamecock fans, including Dawn Staley, who is a season ticket holder.

Okot was the second Gamecock selected on Monday night and became the 24th Gamecock selected in the WNBA Draft.

She was invited to attend the WNBA Draft in New York along with teammates Ta’Niya Latson and Raven Johnson. All were projected to be first-round draft picks.

Okot averaged 12.8 points, 10.6 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, and 1.0 assists last season. She led the SEC in rebounding and was third in the nation with 22 double-doubles.

Okot only played one season at South Carolina, with one season at Mississippi State before that. She grew up in Kenya playing volleyball and didn’t start playing basketball until 2020. Okot played two seasons in Kenya while waiting on her visa, and appealed to the NCAA that those seasons shouldn’t have counted toward her eligibility. Her appeal was denied, and she entered the WNBA Draft.

Okot’s inexperience was seen as a bonus by WNBA teams, who believe she is only scratching the surface of her potential.

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“Just being here today, it means so much to me,” Okot said. “Six years ago, I didn’t see myself being here today, or I never dreamed of myself being here today. My dream was to play in the W, but I didn’t know it was going to be after six years. If I (could) go back, I would tell my younger self, (I’m) just so proud of her. She never gave up, had to go through a lot, and kept moving forward.”

The 2026 WNBA Draft is the first draft under the new CBA. Previously, first-round draft picks made about $78,000. Second and third-round picks made less than $70,000.

This year, first-round picks will all make at least $289,133 as rookies, more than last season’s supermax contracts were worth. As the 13th overall pick, Okot is slated to sign a four-year contract worth $1,294,367. It will pay her $289,133 this year and increase each year.

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Atlanta, GA

Taste of Atlanta celebrates 25 years with a party at the Works

Published

15 hours ago

April 13, 2026

Press Room

Taste of Atlanta celebrates 25 years with a party at the Works

Canoe’s tuna poke at the 2026 Taste of Atlanta

Photo by Daniel Chance

Twenty-five years ago, publishing and event maven Dale DeSena gathered 20 local restaurateurs under an air-conditioned tent in Phipps Plaza’s parking lot. Each brought samples of their best dishes for attendees to taste with pre-purchased tickets. More than 4,000 people participated, and Taste of Atlanta was born.

The festival has evolved throughout the past two decades, as consumer behaviors shifted and other food festivals were developed, but the core principle remains: to showcase Atlanta restaurants and turn tasters into diners.

“The idea of chef-driven, local restaurants was just starting to come into focus,” DeSena says. “Chefs like Bob Amick and Gerry Klaskala were opening new restaurants. They needed help telling people these spots existed.”

Throughout the years, Taste of Atlanta has traveled across the city, from Lenox Mall to Atlantic Station to Spring Street near Georgia Tech and to Historic Fourth Ward Park. It grew, began featuring live music, and added a stage for cooking demonstrations. “The Food Network revolutionized the popularity of chefs being great entertainment,” DeSena says.

Banana tarts at the 2012 Taste of Atlanta

In 2022, following the Covid-19 pandemic, Taste of Atlanta pivoted to focus on hyper-local events that were all-inclusive, rather than ticket-based. Instead of a single, three-day, family-friendly weekend each year, DeSena and her team began planning four Thursday evening events for the 21-and-up crowd.

“Restaurants didn’t have the staff to attend Friday through Sunday, and they wanted to get more return on their investment by concentrating on their neighborhoods,” she explains. “Now we travel to different neighborhoods rather than having attendees travel across the city to us.”

Now, Taste of Atlanta offers events spaced throughout the year in Midtown, Sandy Springs, Alpharetta, and Buckhead. To celebrate its 25th anniversary, it’ll host a party at the Works on the Westside on April 16 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tickets cost $95 plus fees for general admission and $135 plus fees for VIP.

Look for Hector Santiago from El Super Pan, Pano Karatassos Jr. from Kyma, Giovanni DiPalma from Antico Pizza Napoletana, and Jonathan and Justin Fox from Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q, among others. Mixologist from brands like Don Julio, Grand Marnier, and Aperol will be crafting cocktails. There will be local beer, wine, and live music by Seed & Feed Marching Abominable Band and Bogey and the Viceroy. Plus, attendees will receive complimentary admission to Your Third Spot, as well as a game card.

“We intentionally partnered with restaurants who have participated over the past 25 years from all over Atlanta. We tried to think about the diversity of the restaurants, which ones are meaningful to the city, or new from the past few years,” DeSena says. “The chefs will all be there to meet and greet. They’re our rock stars. We want to showcase them.”

She waxes poetic about all the city has accomplished food-wise during the last quarter-century. “Atlanta used to be mostly chains. I’m proud so many chefs have opened great restaurants and how many are still in business. We’re all working together to highlight our great culinary city.”

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Atlanta, GA

First Thoughts On The Hawks-Knicks First Round NBA Playoffs Matchup

Published

1 day ago

April 13, 2026

Press Room

First Thoughts On The Hawks-Knicks First Round NBA Playoffs Matchup

The NBA playoff matchups in the Eastern Conference are set.

After coming into Sunday as the likely No. 5 seed, the Orlando Magic’s stunning loss to the Boston Celtics paired with the Hawks losing and Raptors winning, means that the Hawks are going to be the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference and will face the New York Knicks in the first round.

These two teams met just last Monday, a thrilling win for the Knicks in the final minute. Here are my first three thoughts about this matchup.

1. The Hawks have to have an answer for Mitchell Robinson

Apr 6, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) drives past Atlanta Hawks guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (7) during the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

With no new update on Jock Landale, the Hawks are going to have a big question at the backup center position. Assuming Landale is not able to go at least at the start of this series, Mo Gueye is going to have a big role in this series and he will be going against one of the top backup centers and rebounders in the league, Mitchell Robinson.

In nearly 20 minutes in last week’s matchup, Robinson scored eight points and pulled down 12 rebounds. Having Gueye go against him is going to be a big mismatch, as good as Gueye is defensively. Figuring out how to deal with Robinson is going to be key if the Hawks hope to spring the upset.

2. Can this group handle the playoff pressure?

Jalen Johnson, Dyson Daniels, Jonathan Kuminga, and Onyeka Okongwu have varying degrees of playoff experience, but not as starters. CJ McCollum has years of playoff experience, Nickeil Alexander-Walker helped Minnesota make back-to-back Western Conference Finals Appearances, and Gabe Vincent was a key role player for Miami during their runs recently. However, this group has only been playing together for a few months and have not been under the microscope of the posteason.

This Knicks team however was two wins away from the NBA Finals and has a lot of confidence that they can get back there and finish the job. They are a cohesive unit that plays well together and they are going to have a rowdy crowd at Madison Square Garden behind them. Can the Hawks handle the pressure they are about to face?

3. Hawks are capable of an upset

While the Knicks are certainly going to be favorites (deservedly so), I believe this Hawks team is for real and they are not going to be intimidated.

They have Jalen Johnson, who is set to make his first ever All-NBA team, Nickeil Alexander-Walker is the NBA’s front runner for most improved player, and Dyson Daniels is as good of a perimeter defender as there is.

These two teams as they are currently constructed have only played once, so there is not much to go on, but if this series is like that game that was played last Monday in Atlanta, It should be one of, if not the best series in the first round.

Nobody is going to pick the Hawks and the Knicks are an elite team, but don’t discount the Hawks chances.

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