Braves and Boone Go Boom Against Cubs

After seeing Chicago beat Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux the first two games of their series at Wrigley Field, the Atlanta Braves decided to hit back Sunday.

The Braves hit four home runs, two by Bret Boone, and avoided a three-game sweep with an 8-5 victory over the Cubs.

“I love the never-give-up attitude of this team,” Brian Jordan said of the Braves, who went 3-6 on the trip. “Good things will finally start happening.”

With Atlanta trailing, 5-3, Boone, facing Rodney Myers, led off the eighth with his second homer of the game and eighth of the season. Chipper Jones followed with a single before Jordan’s ninth homer put the Braves up 6-5.

Kevin McGlinchy pitched the seventh in relief of starter John Smoltz. John Rocker pitched the ninth for his fourth save in six opportunities.

Smoltz entered the game with a league-leading 1.99 ERA and gave up five runs and eight hits in six innings--the most runs he’s given up in a game this year. His ERA is now 2.59.

Cub closer Rod Beck struggled in the ninth, giving up two runs and retiring only one of four batters he faced before being pulled to a loud chorus of boos from the crowd of 39,915.

Colorado 5, Arizona 1--Luis Gonzalez extended his hitting streak to 28 games but his teammates could manage only six other hits against the Rockies’ Pedro Astacio at Phoenix.

Larry Walker hit a two-run single in a three-run third inning that extended his hitting streak to 17 games and Astacio struck out four and had a run-scoring single in the eighth in his first complete game with Colorado.

Gonzalez extended his club-record streak with a first-inning bloop double that fell just in front of a sliding Walker. He scored on Matt Williams’ single to give Arizona a 1-0 lead.

Florida 3, Milwaukee 2--Livan Hernandez pitched 7 2/3 innings to win for the first time since April 23 as the Marlins defeated the Brewers at Milwaukee.

Hernandez, who had two losses and a no-decision since his last victory, gave up only one run despite giving up 13 hits, walking three and hitting a batter.

Philadelphia 5, New York 2--Rob Ducey’s two-run triple in the sixth inning rallied the Phillies to a victory at Philadelphia and ended the Mets’ three-game winning streak.

Paul Byrd pitched 6 1/3 innings and gave up both New York runs on eight hits. He had four strikeouts and walked three.

Pittsburgh 9, Montreal 4--Jose Guillen went three for four and drove in two runs as the Pirates completed a three-game sweep at home.

Pete Schourek won for the first time in four starts dating to April 19, giving up three runs and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings. The Pirates had scored only seven runs when Schourek was in the game during his previous eight starts.

Cincinnati 3, San Diego 0--Brett Tomko made a triumphant return from his triple-A demotion by coming one out away from his first career shutout and Mike Cameron homered twice at Cincinnati.

San Diego’s Tony Gwynn went one for four, leaving him 27 hits shy of becoming the 22nd player to reach 3,000.