Braves Pound Out 12 Hits to Take Game and Series From Giants

Derek Lowe pitched a solid five innings before the heat forced him to leave. A good effort by the bullpen and 12 hits from the offense backed Lowe and gave the Braves the series with a 6-3 win.

Lowe’s first run allowed came in the second when Pat Burrell led off with a single and Juan Uribe doubled him in. Uribe reached third in the inning but Lowe induced a double play to end the threat. Lowe pitched good until defense cost him in the fifth. Andres Torres led off the inning with a double and scored on errors. After getting one out, Lowe was pulled for Peter Moylan, who got two quick outs to preserve a three-run lead.

The Braves got that lead with runs in the second, fourth, and fifth. Brooks Conrad doubled to lead off the second and David Ross hit a two-run home run. After loading the bases in the same inning, Alex Gonzalez sac flied a run in for a third run, but Matt Diaz struck out with two in scoring position to end the inning. The Braves scored their fourth run in the fourth on a solo homer by Omar Infante. Their fifth run came in the fifth on an RBI single by Conrad with the bases loaded and no outs, but that was all they could manage and the lead was at three runs.

After such a quick inning for Moylan in the sixth, he was allowed to pitch the seventh and Travis Ishikawa took him deep for a solo homer to cut the lead to two. Jonny Venters relieved Moylan with one on and one out and after giving up a single, he induced a double play to end the inning. The Braves would add one more insurance run in the eighth on an RBI single by Melky Cabrera.

Lowe only went five and third and allowed five hits, but he avoided damage with just two runs and one walk, forcing two double plays. He induced ten groundouts to three flyouts and was very efficient after giving up a run in the second to his second run allowed in the fifth. I can’t blame Bobby too much for allowing Moylan to pitch a second inning after getting two very quick outs in the sixth, but he wasn’t effective and it will probably be a lesson to him. Venters did well to avoid trouble in his inning and a third. Kyle Farnsworth got the final out in the eighth by striking out Burrell. Takashi Saito closed it down in the ninth to give Billy Wagner a day off, allowing a double but striking out the side.

The Braves pounded out six runs on 12 hits despite their second, third, and fourth hitters not starting. Melky went 3-5 with an RBI. Conrad went 2-4 with a double and RBI. Ross went 1-3 with a homer and two RBIs and scored twice. Diaz went 2-3 with a walk from the cleanup spot. Infante added a solo homer. They got to Jonathan Sanchez for four runs on five hits in four innings, walking three times.

The Phillies beat the Mets to stay two back of the Braves. The Phillies continue their homestand by hosting the Dodgers, while the Braves travel to Houston for three against the Astros. Mike Minor makes his debut Monday night.