Braves Lose Heartbreaking Game 3 in Cleveland to Slice World Series Lead in Half

Despite a valiant effort by the Braves on the road, Atlanta simply couldn't overcome John Smoltz's rare blemish on the starting rotation's ledger.

Smoltz lasted just 2.1 innings as the Cleveland bats awoke on their frigid home turf, and though Atlanta eventually evened things up against Paul Assenmacher in the eighth after innings of back-and-forth battling, Eddie Murray finally ended things in the 11th, turning Game 4 into a must-win for both sides.

Atlanta's comeback began in the sixth against Charles Nagy with (what else?!) a Fred McGriff solo shot, cutting a 4-1 deficit by a third. In the seventh, a Ryan Klesko homer upgraded The Land's sweat beads from "moderate" to "extreme".

However, following a Carlos Baerga RBI single, Atlanta really got to work in the eighth, turning a 5-3 deficit briefly into a 6-5 advantage, with Mike Devereaux's RBI single swiping the lead for the Braves.

Unfortunately, Greg McMichael struggled in the eighth, walking Manny Ramirez, allowing a single to Paul Sorrento, and watching a run score on a Sandy Alomar Jr. double. Though he escaped without further damage, things would remain deadlocked until Murray dealt the fatal blow.

Atlanta's next chance to stomp on the gas pedal comes when Steve Avery faces off against Ken Hill.