Braves Stick With Same Lineup for Series Finale Versus Boston Red Sox

The Atlanta Braves are looking to sweep the short series against Boston before tomorrow's off day

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Chris Sale faces his former team the Boston Red Sox for the first time since they traded him to Atlanta this offseason / Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

The Atlanta Braves are back in the win column.

After a disastrous 1-5 road trip, Atlanta took down the Boston Red Sox and their ERA leader Kutter Crawford 4-2 last night thanks to a clutch hit from Marcell Ozuna and quality relief outings.  

The Braves are now in an interesting dynamic, with former Red Sox starter Chris Sale on the mound for Atlanta against his former team and squaring off with Nick Pivetta, who was activated off of the injured list to make today’s start. 

Lineups for the Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox on Wednesday, May 8th 

Here's how Atlanta will line up for the contest:

RF Ronald Acuña Jr
2B Ozzie Albies
3B Austin Riley
1B Matt Olson
DH Marcell Ozuna
SS Orlando Arcia
CF Michael Harris II
C Travis d’Arnaud
LF Jarred Kelenic

Sale told us in spring that he’s the “healthiest I’ve been in years”, and his season results reflect that. 4-1 with a 3.44 ERA, Sale’s gone through the seventh inning in three of his last four starts and is the team’s leader in strikeouts with 42 (in 36.2 innings). The only current members of Boston’s roster who have faced Sale are all imports from other teams - newly acquired first baseman Garrett Cooper (Chicago Cubs) is 0-3 and outfielder Rob Refsnyder is 2-8 (multiple teams).

Here's the Red Sox lineup:

CF Jarren Duran
C Connor Wong
LF Tyler O'Neil
3B Rafael Devers
2B Vaughn Grissom
DH Garrett Cooper
1B Romy Gonzalez
RF Wilyer Abreu
SS Ceddanne Rafaela

Pivetta was masterful to start the season - 1-1 with a 0.82 ERA - before going on the injured list with a flexor strain that kept him out of action for just over a month. He’s 2-3 with a 6.75 ERA in his last five starts against Atlanta, including giving up seven runs on eight hits in just four innings last season in Truist Park. Several Braves have hit him well, with Orlando Arcia being 4-5 with a homer, three RBIs, and a 2.233 OPS and catcher Travis d’Arnaud being 3-4 with a homer, three RBIs, and a 2.500 OPS.   

How to Watch the Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox on Wednesday, May 8th 

Today’s series finale is slated for a 7:20 PM ET first pitch. Atlanta’s broadcast is on Bally Sports South, while the Red Sox are on NESN. For those out of market, both are available on MLB.tv.

If you’d rather just listen, the Red Sox radio broadcast is available on WEEI 93.7 & WCCM 1490 AM (Spanish), while the Atlanta Braves Radio Network has the standard broadcast on 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan and affiliates across Braves Country and a Spanish language broadcast on LA Mejor 1600/1460/1130AM.