SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. (Interstat) — Payton Tolle pitched eight innings and Willson Contreras hit a two-run homer in the eighth to lift the Boston Red Sox past the Atlanta Braves 3-2 on Saturday at Truist Park. The crowd of 39,336 watched a crisp game lasting 2 hours, 6 minutes. Boston opened the scoring in the fourth on Masataka Yoshida’s sacrifice fly that brought home Mickey Gasper. Atlanta had taken a 1-0 lead in the first and tied it in the fifth on Drake Baldwin’s run-scoring single, but Baldwin was thrown out trying for second. Contreras’ ninth homer of the season, a drive to left-center, scored Wilyer Abreu and put Boston ahead. Tolle (2-2) allowed two runs on four hits with three strikeouts. Bryce Elder (4-2) took the loss, giving up three runs on seven hits in eight innings. Aroldis Chapman earned his 10th save with a perfect ninth. Baldwin had two hits, a homer and a single, and two RBIs for Atlanta. José Azócar also had two hits. Boston outhit Atlanta 7-4. The Red Sox improved to 19-26, while Atlanta dropped to 31-15.

SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. (Interstat) — Willson Contreras hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning Saturday night, lifting the Boston Red Sox to a 3-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park before a crowd of 39,336. The game lasted 2 hours, 6 minutes. Boston improved to 19-26 while Atlanta fell to 31-15. Contreras’ blast came with two outs in the top of the eighth, after Wilyer Abreu had doubled. It erased a 2-1 deficit and gave Boston its first lead of the night. Red Sox starter Payton Tolle earned his second win against two losses, allowing two runs on four hits over six innings while striking out three and walking two. Aroldis Chapman recorded his 10th save, striking out one and walking two in a scoreless ninth that included a bases-loaded escape. Atlanta starter Bryce Elder took the loss despite a strong outing. He allowed three runs on seven hits over eight innings, striking out three and walking none. Elder fell to 4-2. Drake Baldwin drove in both Braves runs, homering in the first inning and singling home José Azócar in the fifth. Azócar finished with two hits, both doubles. Baldwin went 2 for 3 with the home run and two RBIs. Boston scored its first run in the fourth. Mickey Gasper singled, Wilyer Abreu singled, and Contreras reached on a fielder’s choice that loaded the bases after an error by third baseman Austin Riley. Masataka Yoshida then lifted a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Gasper and tying the game 1-1. Atlanta answered in the fifth. Azócar doubled with one out, and Baldwin followed with a sharp single to left. Azócar scored, but Baldwin was thrown out trying to advance to second on the throw home, ending the inning with Atlanta ahead 2-1. The Red Sox threatened in the seventh when Ceddanne Rafaela doubled with one out, but Elder retired the next three batters to preserve the lead. In the eighth, Abreu doubled to left field with two outs, bringing Contreras to the plate. Contreras drove a 2-1 pitch to left-center for his ninth home run of the season, putting Boston ahead 3-2. Chapman entered for the bottom of the ninth and immediately encountered trouble. Ozzie Albies popped out, Matt Olson lined out, but Austin Riley reached on a throwing error by shortstop Andruw Monasterio. Mauricio Dubón walked and Michael Harris II walked to load the bases. Chapman then got Ha-Seong Kim to ground out to first, ending the game. Several Atlanta regulars struggled at the plate. Riley went 0 for 4, Michael Harris II went 0 for 3, Mauricio Dubón went 0 for 3, Matt Olson went 0 for 4, Ozzie Albies went 0 for 4, and Ha-Seong Kim went 0 for 4. Martín Pérez pitched a scoreless inning of relief for the Braves. Jarren Duran doubled to lead off the game for Boston but was left stranded. Duran finished 1 for 4 with a double. Rafaela doubled for Boston in the seventh and finished 1 for 4. Contreras had two hits, including the homer, and drove in two. Abreu had two hits, including a double, and scored twice. The victory snapped a two-game losing streak for Boston, which had lost 3-2 in 10 innings to Atlanta on Friday night. The Red Sox had dropped four of their previous six games heading into Saturday. Atlanta had won four of its previous five games before Saturday’s loss. The teams close their three-game series Sunday afternoon, then Boston travels to Kansas City for a three-game set beginning Monday. Atlanta goes to Miami for a four-game series starting Monday. The game also featured strong defensive plays. In the fifth, left fielder Duran threw out Baldwin at second base after the single to left, a key out that prevented further damage. In the third, Boston turned a 4-6-3 double play to end a threat. Boston’s pitching held Atlanta to four hits, with Tolle allowing only the two runs on four hits. Reliever Chapman allowed two walks but escaped the ninth without allowing a run. The win was Boston’s third in its last seven games. Atlanta lost for just the fourth time in its last 11 contests. Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Atlanta 6, Boston 5. Interstat’s ELO system gave Atlanta a 59.10 percent probability to win. Atlanta was installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total of five runs went under the over/under line of eight.

ATLANTA (Interstat) — The Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves meet again Saturday at Truist Park, with the first-place Braves looking to build on a tense extra-inning victory. Boston (18-26) will send left-hander Connelly Early to the mound at 7:20 p.m. against Atlanta right-hander Spencer Strider. The forecast calls for 71 degrees and cloudy skies. Atlanta (31-14) won the series opener 3-2 in 10 innings Friday. The Braves enter as heavy favorites, with Interstat’s game simulator projecting a 6-5 final and an ELO-based win probability of 58.5%. Atlanta is listed at -1.5 on the run line, with the over/under set at 8. Early, a rookie making his 10th start, took the loss Friday despite a solid outing: 5 innings, 5 hits, 2 earned runs and 6 strikeouts. In his past five starts, he has posted wins against Tampa Bay and Baltimore but has also allowed five earned runs in a loss to Houston. Overall, he has a 3.86 ERA over 28 innings in that span. Strider, the Braves’ ace, earned the win Friday with 5 1/3 innings of three-hit ball, allowing one run and striking out four. He has been dominant in his past three outings, including a six-inning, one-hit shutout against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Strider has a 1.84 ERA over his past 14 2/3 innings. Boston has lost five of its past six games overall and has scored two or fewer runs in four of those contests. The Red Sox are 1-5 against Atlanta this season and begin a three-game series at Kansas City on Monday. Atlanta, winners of three of its past four, has outscored opponents 18-6 in that span and remains atop the National League East. The Braves host the Red Sox again Sunday before traveling to Miami for a four-game series starting Monday.