BRYCE ELDER

More than four months of dazzling baseball carried the Atlanta Braves to a fifth straight NL East title.

Dansby Swanson and Matt Olson homered for the third straight game, Travis d’Arnaud hit a go-ahead two-run single in the third inning, and Atlanta Braves beat the New York Mets 5-3, completing a three-game sweep of their NL East rival and taking a two-game lead in the division with three games to play.

Marlins Braves Baseball Atlanta Braves pitcher Bryce Elder works against the Miami Marlins in the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, April 24, 2022, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (Ben Margot)A look at what's happening around the majors on Saturday:LONE STAR STARTBraves rookie right-hander Bryce Elder will be at home in Texas when he starts the middle game of a three-game series against the Rangers. A fifth-round draft pick out of the University of Texas in 2020, Elder grew up in Decatur, Texas, which is only about an hour drive from Globe Life Field. He is now the third-base coach for the Braves — and was back in Texas on his 70th birthday Friday. Syndergaard is 2-0 with a 1.04 in his first two starts with the Angels in a comeback attempt.

Braves rookie right-hander Bryce Elder will be at home in Texas when he starts the middle game of a three-game series against the Rangers.

Braves Padres Baseball San Diego Padres' Jurickson Profar flips his bat after hitting a solo home run during the second inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves in San Diego, Saturday, April 16, 2022. He'll face right-hander Bryce Elder (1-0, 4.76), making his second big league start. Turner, who led the majors in batting average (.328) and hits (195) last year, has hit safely in all eight games in 2022. Turner had three hits Saturday night, including a two-run homer that snapped a scoreless tie in the sixth inning of a 5-2 victory. BRASH STARTMariners rookie right-hander Matt Brash faces Houston for his second start after an impressive debut against the White Sox.

The Padres’ hopes of shaking off a disappointing 2021 aren’t off to a great start — San Diego has lost four of five heading into its series finale against the World Series champion Braves.

The Padres’ hopes of shaking off a disappointing 2021 aren’t off to a great start — San Diego has lost four of five heading into a series finale against the World Series champion Braves.

Twins Braves Baseball Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Bryce Elder gets a fist pump from catcher William Contreras in the third inning of a spring training baseball game against the Minnesota Twins in North Port, Fla., Friday, March 18, 2022. (Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP) (Curtis Compton)ATLANTA — (AP) — The Atlanta Braves capped a busy week with another stunning move, signing three-time All-Star closer Kenley Jansen to a $16 million, one-year contract Friday night. The left-hander had 37 saves and was especially effective down the stretch and in the postseason for the World Series champions. Jansen has 350 saves in his 12-year career which had been spent entirely with the Dodgers. The Dodgers and Braves have squared off in the last two NL Championship Series, each winning once on the way to a World Series title.