Atlanta pitching prospect Touki Toussaint threw six strong innings in his major league debut and fellow rookie Ronald Acuna Jr. homered for the third straight game to help the host Braves to a 9-1 win over the Miami Marlins in the first game of a day-night doubleheader on Monday at SunTrust Park.

The right-handed Toussaint (1-0) kept Miami off-balance with his curveball and allowed only one run on two hits and two walks. He struck out four and retired 14 of the final 16 batters he faced. Toussaint, 22, became the seventh-youngest player to start a game this season, the fourth for Atlanta. He was added to the roster as the 26th player for the doubleheader.

Acuna led off the game with a long homer to center field, his 16th. Acuna was 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, three RBI and scored three runs. He is now 28-for-85 with 21 runs scored and nine homers in 22 games since being moved to the leadoff spot on July 20.

The Atlanta bullpen got a scoreless inning from Jesse Biddle and two scoreless frames from rookie Chad Sobotka, who also picked up his first career single in the eighth inning.

The losing pitcher was Pablo Lopez (2-3), who gave up six runs (five earned) on six hits and two walks. He struck out five in 5 1/3 innings.

Miami tied the game 1-1 in the second on Isaac Galloway's RBI double.

Atlanta answered with a run in the fourth when Johan Camargo doubled in Nick Markakis and tacked on another in the fifth on Freddie Freeman's sacrifice fly.

The Braves put it away in the sixth by scoring five times. Charlie Culberson doubled home two runs, Acuna doubled home two more and Ozzie Albies added an RBI single.

Atlanta made it 9-1 with a run in the eighth on a long single by Albies to dead center.

--Field Level Media