Outfielders Trayce Thompson and Nate Eaton hit back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the fifth to re-tie and retake the lead. Clobbering a 1-2 pitch from Bryce Elder, Thompson added homer No. 6 to his league-leading total. Eaton’s round-tripper, his third of the spring, moved him into a tie for second in the league.

Batting ninth and starting in center-field, Thompson also walked and stole second in his first at-bat. He entered the day with the third-highest OPS among Grapefruit League hitters (minimum 20 plate appearances), then raised his mark from 1.636 to 1.794. He’s also leading the club with 12 RBI – no other player has more than eight – and extra-base hits.

Thompson and Eaton both arrived in camp with slim chances of making the roster. The Red Sox had a strong outfield last season, led by Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Wilyer Abreu, who won the Gold Glove in right-field. They also have depth in Rob Refsnyder and Romy Gonzalez, among other bench options, and top prospects Roman Anthony and Kristian Campbell are expected to debut this season.

However, the outfield contingent is looking less secure than expected. After falling victim to the stomach bug that ravaged Red Sox camp last week, Anthony told reporters that he lost 10 pounds and won’t be getting back into games right away. Manager Alex Cora also announced earlier this winter that the Sox plan to reintroduce Masataka Yoshida to the outfield following his offseason shoulder surgery for the injury that kept him in the designated hitter role for all but one game last year. He’s played in five preseason games thus far, but only as the DH, with no clear timetable for any defensive appearances.

Above all, there’s Abreu, who’s on a slow and carefully-monitored journey back from a viral gastrointestinal illness in early February. He only recently began baseball activities, and has yet to get in a game. As the remaining preseason slate rapidly dwindles, his Opening Day outlook grows bleaker. Thompson and Eaton are two candidates, but the front office is also exploring external options.

Lethal lineup weapons

The Red Sox initially got on the board thanks to another duo. Continuing to look absolutely lethal hitting back-to-back in the lineup, Alex Bregman and Trevor Story hit a pair of one-out doubles to take a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first.

Bregman and Story entered the contest ranked fifth and sixth on the Grapefruit League OPS leaderboards. Through their first eight spring training contests Bregman is hitting .450 with a 1.469 OPS, while Story is hitting .458 with a 1.355 OPS, and leading the team in hits (11) and doubles (4). Bregman, Thompson, and Nick Sogard are tied for second with nine hits apiece.

Two of Boston’s ‘Big 3’ top prospects subbed into the game in later innings and helped put the game out of reach. Replacing Thompson in the lineup, Kristian Campbell led off the seventh with a walk. He was able to come home when Marcelo Mayer chopped an RBI single through the left side of the infield, extending Boston’s lead to 5-3. Sogard and Mayer touched home moments later on an RBI-double by Max Ferguson, one of the Padres prospects from the Eric Hosmer trade in ‘22, and wild pitch by Patrick Halligan.

Holding it down in the Fort

While the Boston bats were loud, the pitching staff mostly kept the Braves bats quiet. Richard Fitts got himself into and out of trouble throughout his 2 ⅓-inning start, allowing an earned run on two hits. The rookie right-hander struck out four, but walked three, including leadoff man Jarred Kelenic in the top of the first. Fitts gave up back-to-back singles to begin the second before getting the next three men out.

After Fitts issued a pair of one-out walks in the third, Cora made a change, but the walks continued. Brennan Bernardino made it four consecutive free passes for the Braves, walking in a run to let Atlanta get on the board before striking out two to leave the bases loaded.

Zack Kelly, Liam Hendriks, Greg Weisser, Wyatt Mills, and Isaiah Campbell pitched the rest of the way. The Braves knocked Hendriks around, tagging him for two earned runs on three hits, including a go-ahead two-run homer by Garrett Cooper, who played some first base for Boston last season.

Atlanta was unable to rally further. Backed by strong defense around the diamond, Weissert faced the minimum over his two innings. He hit his first batter, Eddy Alvarez, to begin the sixth, but catcher Seby Zavala gunned to Kristian Campbell at second to catch the Brave stealing. In the following frame, Campbell and Nathan Hickey completed a double play to erase Kobe Kato’s one-out single and end the inning.

Mills, 30, added to his strong preseason showing, punching out the side in a meticulous eighth inning in which he threw 10 of 12 pitches for strikes. Since giving up a solo homer in his preseason debut on Feb. 25, the righty has made three consecutive scoreless appearances (an inning apiece), striking out five, walking none, and yielding just one hit.

Cal Conley led off the ninth with a double, then watched as Isaiah Campbell got his teammates in order to end the game.

The Red Sox are 8-6 in Grapefruit League play, including 6-2-1 in their last nine games. After an off-day Monday, they’ll host the Phillies at 1:05 p.m. Tuesday.