Contreras delivers dramatic late homer to snap Red Sox drought
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ATLANTA – Searching for the big hit like someone thirsts for water on a 100-degree day in the desert, Willson Contreras put at least a temporary end to a stunning offensive dryspell for the Red Sox of late.
His team four outs from defeat, the cleanup hitter Contreras walloped a two-run homer to left to overturn a one-run deficit and lift Boston to a 3-2 victory over the Braves at Truist Field.
Contreras was down in the count 1-2 and mauled a slider by Bryce Elder a Statcast-projected 426 feet for his ninth homer of the season, causing a long-awaited eruption in the Boston dugout.
The Sox had scored 10 runs over their previous six games, losing four of them.
Without Payton Tolle, the win would not have been possible.
Staring down the barrel of perhaps the most potent offense in the Major Leagues, Tolle hardly blinked, other than on a couple of fierce swings by Drake Baldwin, who accounted for both Atlanta runs on a leadoff homer and an RBI single.
Fact is, Tolle (2-2, 2.05 ERA in five starts) is flourishing in his rookie season, serving as a clear bright spot for the 19-26 Red Sox.