Atlanta Braves' Freddie Freeman Cracks 1,000th Career Hit

Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman went 2-for-5 with two RBI and a run during Thursday's 5-2 victory over the Washington Nationals. In doing so, he collected his 1,000th major league hit.

He is the fifth Braves player to accrue 1,000 hits before their 28th birthday, joining Hank Aaron, Andruw Jones, Eddie Mathews and Joe Torre, per Elias Sports Bureau. In addition to his 1,000 hits, Freeman also stands at 152 homers and 542 RBI.

The 27-year-old, who finished sixth in National League MVP voting last season while slashing .302/.400/.569, is boasting better numbers (.345/.455/.730) just prior to the All-Star break this season. Much of that improvement comes from increasing his home run rate (7.9 percent) and walk rate (15.2 percent) while decreasing his strikeout percentage (19.1 percent), per Baseball Reference.

With that kind of production, the Braves are likely happy to have him locked up on a deal that extends through 2021. He inked the eight-year, $135 million deal with the club in 2014.

Freeman will attempt to further his impressive season on Friday in what would be his fourth game back after missing 45 games due to a fractured wrist. Washington ace Max Scherzer, who owns a 1.94 ERA and a 0.77 WHIP, is set to take the mound at home against Freeman and the Braves.