Braves Put an End to Marlins’ Streak

On the verge of being swept by National League wild-card leader Florida, Atlanta Brave Manager Bobby Cox turned to his bench.

That’s where Chipper Jones and Javy Lopez sat.

The two sluggers came through in rare pinch-hit roles Sunday at Atlanta, sparking a five-run ninth inning against Braden Looper for an 8-4 victory that ended the Marlins’ seven-game winning streak.

Atlanta ended a three-game losing streak and avoided being swept by Florida in a three-game series for the first time since 1996.

“We’ve been struggling lately,” said Robert Fick, whose two-run single put the Braves ahead. “For us to come back in the ninth, it let us know we’ve still got it, I guess.”

By salvaging the final game of the series at Miami, Atlanta increased its lead over Florida in the NL East to 9 1/2 games with two weeks to go. The Braves are only 22-20 since Aug. 1.

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Philadelphia 10, Pittsburgh 7 -- Jim Thome drove in three runs as the Phillies shook off two weekend losses in Pittsburgh to quickly open an eight-run lead, then held on for a much-needed victory.

Randy Wolf (15-9) pitched 6 1/3 innings to win his third consecutive decision. He also helped himself with two hits as Philadelphia avoided a three-game sweep by the non-contending Pirates.

The Phillies are 1 1/2 games behind the Marlins in the wild-card race with the teams beginning a three-game series Tuesday night at Philadelphia. The Marlins are 9-4 against the Phillies and have beaten them eight straight times.

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San Francisco 5, Milwaukee 4 -- Todd Linden hit a bases-loaded single in the 11th inning to lead the Giants at San Francisco.

Barry Bonds drew his 2,062nd walk as a leadoff pinch-hitter in the eighth, tying Babe Ruth for second place on baseball’s career list. Shortly after he was replaced by a pinch-runner, Bonds was ejected for arguing from the dugout with plate umpire Jim Reynolds.

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Houston 4, St. Louis 1 -- Tim Redding combined with three relievers on a three-hitter and Craig Biggio drove in three runs as the Astros completed a three-game sweep at Houston.

Houston, which leads the NL Central, dropped the Cardinals 5 1/2 games back with two weeks left in the regular season. The teams play three more games in St. Louis next weekend.

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Cincinnati 1, Chicago 0 -- Russell Branyan hit an RBI single with two out in the ninth inning at Chicago, and the Cubs wasted a fine effort by Carlos Zambrano. The Cubs are two games behind Houston in the NL Central race.

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Arizona 5, Colorado 0 -- Randy Johnson pitched his first shutout in exactly one year, tying a season high with 12 strikeouts and throwing a one-hitter to lead the Diamondbacks at Phoenix.