Braves 10, Red Sox 2: Acuña Grand Slam Powers Sale Over Former Team

The lead

May 28, 2026 - Boston - The Atlanta Braves closed a three-game sweep at Fenway Park with a 10-2 win over the Boston Red Sox, as Ronald Acuña Jr. hit a grand slam, Chris Sale struck out eight against his former club, and Michael Harris II and Ozzie Albies also homered, per the Associated Press recap on AP News.

Acuña's slam was his first homer since April 24 and part of a five-run sixth that turned a 2-2 tie into a rout. Sale improved to 8-3 and 3-0 versus Boston since the 2024 trade that sent him to Atlanta.

How the game turned

Atlanta scored twice in the fourth on singles from Matt Olson and Dominic Smith. Boston answered in the bottom half when Caleb Durbin doubled home a run and Jarren Duran singled in the tying run.

The game stayed 2-2 until the sixth. Mike Yastrzemski—grandson of Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski—drew a bases-loaded walk off Greg Weissert to break the deadlock. Acuña followed with his fourth career grand slam to left center for 7-2. Harris added a solo shot in the seventh, and Albies capped the night with a two-run homer in the ninth.

Pitching and matchup notes

Red Sox rookie Payton Tolle struck out seven in 4⅔ innings before the bullpen unraveled. Danny Coulombe (0-2) took the loss after loading the bases in the sixth. Sale allowed two runs on six hits with three walks in five innings.

Sale told reporters he liked watching Tolle pitch—"He's going to be good for a long time," per Ian Browne of MLB.com, cited by ClutchPoints.

AthX Engine graded Atlanta at 21 team FP—top on the six-game Thursday card—with Acuña at 14 hitting FP and Sale at 12 pitching FP.

Bats that changed the board

Albies finished 3-for-5 with three hits and the ninth-inning blast. Smith drove in a run with an RBI single in the fourth. Boston fell to 9-19 at Fenway this season; chants of "Sell the team!" followed Harris' homer in the seventh, per AP.

AthX Engine fantasy angle

A 21 team FP night built on a slam, two more homers, and eight strikeouts from the starter is the AthX Engine template for a series-clinching rout—spread production without a single 20 FP arm. Daily scoring remains separate from dynamic pricing.

What comes next

The Braves head home; Boston continues its homestand, per AP probables from the series.

*Sources: MLB.com schedule, AP News recap, ClutchPoints, AthX Engine scoring. Information only; not financial advice.*