PHILADELPHIA (Interstat) — Martín Pérez delivered a dominant six-inning start and Austin Riley launched two home runs to power the Atlanta Braves to a 9-0 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night at Citizens Bank Park.

A crowd of 43,048 watched as the Braves (13-7) scored early and often, battering Phillies starter Taijuan Walker and silencing Philadelphia’s bats to open a three-game series between National League East rivals. The Phillies fell to 8-11 with the loss.

The most important part of the game came in the top of the second inning, which transformed a manageable deficit into a commanding rout. Already leading 2-0, the Braves’ offense erupted against Walker. Michael Harris II and Ronald Acuña Jr. led off with back-to-back singles. After a strikeout, Matt Olson drove in Harris with a single to right, making it 3-0. That brought Riley to the plate with two men on. On a 1-1 pitch, Riley crushed a Walker offering deep to right-center field for a three-run homer, his second of the season, extending the Atlanta lead to 6-0 and effectively putting the game out of reach before many fans had settled into their seats.

That outburst provided more than enough support for Pérez, who earned his first win of the season. The left-hander, who entered the game with a 9.00 ERA after two rocky starts, was in complete control. He scattered four hits over six scoreless innings, walking two and striking out four. His performance was a stark turnaround from his previous outing, a 6-0 loss to Cleveland on April 11.

Pérez navigated early trouble in the first inning, loading the bases with one out on a hit-by-pitch, a single by Bryce Harper and a walk. He escaped unscathed by striking out Edmundo Sosa and getting J.T. Realmuto to fly out. He later stranded Harper at third after a one-out triple in the third inning. The Phillies never seriously threatened against him again.

The Braves bullpen preserved the shutout, with José Suarez earning his first save of the year by pitching the final three innings, allowing just two hits and striking out one.

Atlanta’s offensive attack was relentless, tallying 12 hits. After Riley’s second-inning blast, Dominic Smith added a solo home run in the third inning, his fourth, to make it 7-0. Harris II contributed a solo shot of his own in the eighth inning, his third, and Riley capped the scoring with his second homer of the night, a solo blast in the ninth off Orion Kerkering. It was Riley’s third home run of the season, and he finished 2-for-5 with four RBIs. Harris went 3-for-4 with the homer.

Harper was a bright spot for the otherwise dormant Phillies, going 3-for-4 with a triple. The rest of the Philadelphia lineup managed just three other hits. Walker took the loss, falling to 1-3 after surrendering seven runs on seven hits and three walks in just 2 2/3 innings. The Philadelphia bullpen, including scoreless outings from Tim Mayza and Tanner Banks, provided little relief as Chase Shugart and Kerkering allowed the final two runs.

The game time was 2 hours, 34 minutes. The result defied pregame projections from Interstat, which gave the Phillies a 55.9% probability to win and projected a 6-3 Atlanta victory. The Braves covered the -1.5 spread, and the total of nine runs went under the over/under line of 9.5.

Atlanta will look to continue its momentum in the middle game of the series on Saturday. Philadelphia will aim to regroup and even the series before heading out on a road trip.