ATLANTA – Christian Arroyo relished delivering the big hit Wednesday night for the Boston Red Sox. Upon further review, though, he thinks his celebration needs some work.
Arroyo delivered a pinch-hit grand slam in the seventh inning to give his team the lead, and the surging Red Sox beat the Atlanta Braves 10-8 on Wednesday night to move within one game of first place in the American League East Division standings.
Arroyo blew kisses and took a fancy step as he rounded third base at Truist Park.
“These are the type moments you live for,” he said. “I will say this, it does need some work. I saw the video of it.”
Boston recovered after blowing a 6-3 lead to sweep the two-game series. Freddie Freeman hit a go-ahead homer for Atlanta in the sixth inning after Dansby Swanson’s three-run shot tied the game in the fifth.
The Red Sox (42-27) are only one game behind the Tampa Bay Rays, who lost 8-7 in 10 innings to the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday. Boston, which moved a season-best 15 games over .500, has won three consecutive games and five of seven.
Adam Ottavino gave up a run-scoring double to Ronald Acuña Jr. in the ninth. Acuña was thrown out at third, and Ottavino then struck out Freeman for his fourth save of the season.
“I was just trying to make an aggressive play,” Acuña said through a translator. “Looking back on it now, that was my bad. I should have given the hitter behind me a chance to drive in a run.”
The Red Sox loaded the bases against Shane Greene (0-1) in the seventh. Greene struck out Bobby Dalbec for the second out of the inning before left-hander A.J. Minter gave up Arroyo’s fourth homer of the season deep into the left-field seats.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora planned to use Danny Santana as his pinch-hitter before the Braves brought in Minter.
“When they went with the lefty, it was a no-brainer: Let’s go with Arroyo,” Cora said.
Yacksel Rios (1-0) recorded one out in the sixth after he was added to the roster before the game. Rios, 27, was acquired from the Seattle Mariners on Monday for cash.
Hunter Renfroe hit a two-run single in the first, and Xander Bogaerts had three doubles to lead Boston’s 14-hit attack.
The Braves pulled even in the fifth on Swanson’s three-run homer off Richards. With one out in the sixth, Freeman hit a low fastball from Hirokazu Sawamura into the seats in left-center for his 16th homer of the year.
Boston extended the Braves’ woes with consecutive 10-8 victories. Atlanta (30-35), which won the National League East the past three years, has lost six of its past seven games.
“We’ve got to do a better job of that if we’re going to get on a run like we feel like we’re capable of,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said.
Ian Anderson allowed four runs on seven hits and a walk in four innings. Boston scored two runs in the fourth off the right-hander. Dalbec’s single drove in Renfroe, who just missed a homer with his double to left field.
Left-hander Darwinzon Hernandez survived a bases-loaded jam in the seventh. Ozzie Albies grounded out to end the inning.
Boston right-hander Garrett Richards allowed six runs (four earned) in four-plus innings. He said he is battling to adjust to Major League Baseball’s new enforcement of a ban on foreign substances used by pitchers. Beginning Monday, pitchers are subject to an ejection and a 10-game suspension if caught by umpires.
Richards said he was forced to rely almost completely on fastballs.
Asked if the adjustment is difficult, Richards said, “I can’t think of a worse time, to be honest with you.”
The game lasted 4 hours, 10 minutes. Richards said that will become normal.
“If you just watch baseball across the league, you’re going to see some interesting things,” he said. “Be prepared for four-hour games. … I’m just grateful I got this far into my career before we’re at this point.”
Braves left-handed pitcher Kyle Muller, recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett before the game, gave up two runs on four hits in the fifth in his MLB debut. Bogaerts’ double drove in J.D. Martinez, who singled.
Atlanta left-hander Tucker Davidson was placed on the 10-day injured list with left forearm inflammation. He left with one out in the third inning of Tuesday night’s loss.
“We’ve got to shut him down for 10 days just to let everything calm down,” Snitker said. “Then we’ll see where we’re at.”