CHICAGO (Interstat) — Davis Martin pitched six shutout innings and the Chicago White Sox held on for a 2-1 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night at Guaranteed Rate Field. Martin (9-2) allowed six hits, struck out six and walked none, bouncing back from a poor start. The White Sox scored both runs in the fourth inning. Derek Hill singled to center to drive in Braden Montgomery, and Luisangel Acuña’s groundout scored Hill. Chris Sale (8-5) took the loss, giving up two runs on six hits over 5 2/3 innings with six strikeouts. Atlanta’s lone run came in the seventh on a fielding error by third baseman Miguel Vargas that allowed Jorge Mateo to score. Bryan Hudson earned his third save with a perfect ninth inning. Braden Montgomery had two hits for Chicago, and Acuña added two hits and an RBI. The Braves had seven hits but left five runners on base. Chicago improved to 36-31, while Atlanta fell to 45-23. The teams conclude their two-game series Thursday.

CHICAGO (Interstat) — Davis Martin pitched six shutout innings and Luisangel Acuña drove in the go-ahead run as the Chicago White Sox defeated the Atlanta Braves 2-1 on Wednesday night at Guaranteed Rate Field. Martin allowed six hits, struck out six and walked none, improving to 9-2. Bryan Hudson pitched a scoreless ninth for his third save. Chris Sale took the loss, falling to 8-5, after surrendering two runs in six innings. The White Sox took the lead in the fourth inning. Braden Montgomery led off with a double to left field. Derek Hill followed with a sharp single to center that scored Montgomery, tying the game at 1-1. Hill advanced to third on a groundout by Jacob Gonzalez, then scored on a groundout from Acuña to give Chicago a 2-1 lead. Atlanta had its best chance to answer in the seventh. Jorge Mateo singled to lead off, and after Austin Wynns lined out, Mateo moved to second on a strikeout. Ozzie Albies then reached on a fielding error by third baseman Miguel Vargas, allowing Mateo to score and cutting the deficit to 2-1. Matt Olson walked, but Dominic Smith popped out to end the threat. Martin escaped a jam in the second, when Atlanta loaded the bases with one out on a single by Mauricio Dubón, a hit batter and a single by Mike Yastrzemski. Martin struck out Jorge Mateo and got Austin Wynns to line out. Chicago’s bullpen held the lead. Seranthony Domínguez pitched a 1-2-3 eighth, and Sean Newcomb worked a scoreless seventh with one hit allowed and a strikeout. The Braves scored their only run in the seventh, an unearned run that broke a streak of 17 consecutive scoreless innings by White Sox pitchers against Atlanta dating to the previous night’s 10-inning contest. Chicago’s defense turned in a key play in the bottom of the seventh when third baseman Austin Riley threw wide to home on a fielder’s choice that cut down Acuña at the plate, preserving the lead. Atlanta, which entered with a major-league best 45-23 record, had won four of its previous five games. The White Sox improved to 36-31. Chicago mustered eight hits, with Montgomery going 2-for-4 with a double, and Acuña 2-for-3. Hill added a hit and an RBI. For Atlanta, Dubón, Olson, Smith, Albies, Yastrzemski, Mateo and Harris II each had one hit, but the Braves left seven runners on base and struck out 10 times. The game lasted 2 hours, 36 minutes before an announced crowd of 14,622. Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of Atlanta 7, Chicago 6. Interstatl’s ELO system gave Atlanta a 62.3 percent probability to win. The Braves were installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5, and the total score of 3 went under the over/under line of 7.5.

CHICAGO (Interstat) — The Atlanta Braves, sporting the best record in the majors at 45-21, aim to extend their recent mastery over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night at Guaranteed Rate Field. The Braves send left-hander Chris Sale (8-4) to the mound against the White Sox (34-31). Sale, who spent seven seasons with Chicago, gets the ball on a warm evening with first pitch set for 7:10 p.m. under mostly cloudy skies and 83-degree temperatures. Atlanta enters having won four of its last five, including a 4-0 shutout victory over the White Sox on Tuesday. The Braves also took two of three from the Pittsburgh Pirates over the weekend and have won seven of their last 10. Key for Atlanta is right-hander Bryce Elder, who has been used in a relief role of late. Elder has won his last two outings, including a scoreless inning Sunday against the Pirates and 6 2/3 solid frames June 2 against Toronto. He allowed just two earned runs over six innings in a win at Pittsburgh on June 7. For the White Sox, reliever Trevor Richards has been a steady presence. Over his last five appearances, Richards has allowed only one earned run and one hit in 7 2/3 innings, striking out four. He last pitched Sunday at Philadelphia, throwing 2 1/3 scoreless innings. Chicago managed only three hits in Tuesday’s loss to Atlanta and has dropped six of its last nine games. The White Sox are 4-9 in their past 13 home games. The Braves have been hitting well, averaging 5.2 runs per game over their past eight contests. Chicago’s offense has struggled, scoring three or fewer runs in seven of its last 11. The Interstat game simulator projects a 7-6 Braves victory. Atlanta is a -1.5 favorite on the run line, and the over/under is 7.5 total runs. After Wednesday, the teams conclude the series Thursday afternoon. Atlanta then travels to the New York Mets for a three-game series starting Friday. The White Sox open a home series Friday against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Atlanta entered the series with a 3.02 team ERA, second-best in the National League, while Chicago’s staff had a 4.41 mark, 11th in the American League.