After Neagle's gem in Game 4, Game 5 was clearly the pivotal game of the series. If the Marlins lost, the Braves would be up three games to two and going home with an almost certain NL pennant in sight. Liván Hernández replaced Kevin Brown, who had fallen ill that day. The Braves threatened immediately in the first inning, with Kenny Lofton hitting a triple and Keith Lockhart being walked, putting runners on the corners with no outs. However, Livan regrouped and struck out the heart of the order. Florida scored a run in the bottom of the inning off Greg Maddux when Devon White was hit by a pitch. It was noted that he appeared to make no effort to get out of the way of the pitch, though this is rarely called against a player even though the rules state that a player can be called out for this. White subsequently stole second and after a walk, scored on Bobby Bonilla's single. The Braves evened the game with a Michael Tucker home run in the second. The score remained tied at 1–1 as Maddux and Hernández traded scoreless innings. In the bottom of the seventh, Bobby Bonilla doubled and scored on a single by Jeff Conine to give the Marlins a 2-1 lead. Hernández continued to shut down a befuddled Braves offense. The Braves had a chance for a potential two-out rally in the eighth with Lofton reaching on a walk, but was thrown out trying to steal second base. The game ended with Hernandez striking out Fred McGriff on a called third strike, on a 3-2 pitch that appeared to be at least a foot off the plate. Hernández pitched a complete game, three-hit, 15 strikeout masterpiece to reclaim a series lead for the Marlins. The Braves three, four, five hitters went 1-11 with seven strikeouts.