DETROIT (Interstat) — Rookie Nacho Alvarez Jr. launched the first two home runs of his major league career, including a game-tying shot in the eighth inning, before delivering a clutch go-ahead single in the ninth to cap a dramatic rally and lift the Atlanta Braves to a 6-5 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Saturday afternoon at Comerica Park.

The Braves won their seventh consecutive game, while the Tigers lost their fifth straight and for the eighth time in nine games. The loss shrunk Detroit’s lead in the AL Central to 1 1/2 games over the Cleveland Guardians.

With the Braves trailing 5-4 entering the ninth, Ozzie Albies and Ha-Seong Kim started the inning with back-to-back singles off Tigers reliever Will Vest. Vest then struck out Michael Harris II and Sandy León, bringing Alvarez to the plate with two outs. The rookie third baseman lined a single into right field, scoring Albies to tie the game. Jurickson Profar followed with a single that scored Kim, giving Atlanta the lead.

Raisel Iglesias worked a perfect bottom of the ninth, retiring the side in order to secure his 27th save of the season and seal the comeback victory.

Vest (6-5) was charged with the loss and the blown save. Dylan Dodd (1-0) earned the win with a scoreless inning of relief in the eighth.

The game was a back-and-forth affair. Detroit struck first in the opening inning on an RBI single from Spencer Torkelson that scored Gleyber Torres.

Atlanta responded with a three-run third inning to take the lead. Alvarez hit his first career homer, a solo shot to left field. Later in the inning, with two outs, Drake Baldwin hit a two-run homer to right-center field, scoring Ronald Acuña Jr., who had walked.

The Tigers got one run back in the bottom of the third on a sacrifice fly from Wenceel Pérez, making the score 3-2.

Detroit’s Zach McKinstry cut the deficit to one run again with a solo home run to left-center in the sixth inning. The Tigers then took their first lead since the first inning in the seventh. After a single by Jahmai Jones, Torkelson hit a two-run homer to left field, his 31st of the season, putting Detroit ahead 5-3.

Alvarez began Atlanta’s comeback in the eighth, hitting his second homer of the afternoon, another solo shot, this time to left-center to pull the Braves within a run and set the stage for the ninth-inning rally.

Braves starter Joey Wentz turned in a solid performance, allowing two earned runs on six hits over five innings while striking out seven. Tigers starter Keider Montero did not factor into the decision.

The announced attendance was 38,079, and the game took 2 hours and 52 minutes to complete.

The Braves improved to 72-83 with the win. The Tigers fell to 85-70. The two teams conclude their three-game series on Sunday.