BOSTON — The Red Sox fought off another National League East opponent Tuesday night by taking down the Atlanta Braves, 7-1, at Fenway Park.
Boston improves its record to 54-47 after its third straight win while the Braves, who entered the series with the best record in baseball, drop to 64-35.
Check out the full box score here.
ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
Atlanta’s offense came into the matchup with all the attention, and rightfully so. But it was Boston’s attack that did a better job wearing down the opponent’s pitchers.
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The Red Sox made things difficult on Braves starter Charlie Morton, who only pitched 3 2/3 innings and issued five walks, from the get-go. In the bottom of the first inning alone, Rafael Devers singled after an 11-pitch at-bat and Triston Casas worked a walk with the bases loaded.
And just when it seemed like Morton would escape damage, the Red Sox didn’t let him off the hook, either. The Red Sox scored six of their seven runs with two outs, taking advantage of every change they got. That was best illustrated in the fourth inning with Yu Chang getting on via a walk with two outs before stealing second and advancing to third on an error. Jarren Duran then singled him home, a great example of how to manufacture a run.
It was that type of nonstop offensive approach — every member of the lineup reached base at least once — that allowed the Red Sox to overcome their typical blunders, including an eye sore of a baserunning mistake by running into an 8-5-3 triple play.
STARS OF THE GAME
— Nick Pivetta was exceptional out of the bullpen once again. He piggybacked off opener John Schreiber and held the Braves scoreless over five innings of work. He allowed only three hits and one walk while striking out five.
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— Masataka Yoshida led the offense with a 3-for-4 performance. He punctuated his strong showing, in which he reached bases four times, by lining a two-run home run to right field.
— Chang reached base twice and delivered an RBI single in the fifth. His two-out walk an inning earlier was instrumental in keying a rally as well.
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WAGER WATCH
Duran continues to cause havoc with his speed at the top of the Red Sox lineup. FanDuel Sportsbook set the odds of Duran recording a steal at +225 and the speedster not only swiped one bag, but two. A $100 wager would have netted a total of $335.
ON DECK AT NESN
The Red Sox close out their quick two-game series with the Braves on Wednesday. First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET, and the game will air on ESPN. After an off day Thursday, the Red Sox return to NESN airwaves when they begin a six-game West Coast road trip starting Friday against the San Francisco Giants.
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Featured image via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
