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Sunday, May 14 1:35pm ET
Phillies can't keep up with Joneses | |||||
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PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Chipper Jones is starting to regain the form that won him the National League's MVP award last season. "I had two or three good at-bats today; that gives me something to build on," he said after homering from both sides of the plate Sunday in the Atlanta Braves' 11-2 rout of Philadelphia, which completed a three-game sweep of the Phillies.
It was the fourth time he has hit homers from both sides, with the others coming last season. It was his 14th two-homer game overall. "I just spread (my stance) out a little more and put some good swings on some balls," said Jones, hitting .301 this season with eight homers and 25 RBI. Andruw Jones missed hitting for the cycle by a single. He had an RBI double in the first, a two-run homer in the second and a triple in the fifth. Trying to become the first Braves player to hit for the cycle since Albert Hall on Sept. 23, 1987, and just the fifth player in the club's history, Jones was robbed of a single when Trever Miller caught a liner up the middle in the seventh. "I really thought I had it," said Jones, who has hits in 29 of his last 34 games, hitting .328 during that span with nine homers and 19 RBI. "I was trying to hit the ball up the middle," Jones said. "I made contact and saw the pitcher went down to make the play. That was tough, a lot of people haven't ever hit for the cycle. I had my shot, I hope I get that shot again." He did, but struck out in the eighth on three Scott Aldred sliders. John Burkett (2-2) allowed five hits in seven shutout innings. "I had good command of my fastball and that's always key for me," said Burkett, who has won his last two starts and has struck out 13 in his last 13 innings. "That pitch sets up everything else." Atlanta is averaging eight runs a game during his starts. "They did it again, the boys can put a lot of points on the board," Burkett said. Burkett, who signed with the team March 29 after being released by Tampa Bay, has been a surprise. "He thrown great, better than what we anticipated," manager Bobby Cox said. "You look at the lines in a couple of his earlier games and it might not have shown that, but he has really thrown well every time out there." Bobby Abreu hit a two-run homer off Greg McMichael in the eighth. Atlanta took a 3-0 lead before Byrd recorded an out. Rafael Furcal led off with a single, Andruw Jones doubled and Chipper Jones homered. Byrd, who missed his last scheduled start with a strained groin muscle, appeared to compose himself after the Jones homer as he struck out the side. But Byrd yielded three more runs in the second and lasted just three innings, his second-shortest outing of the season. He surrendered six runs and six hits. "I was frustrated," Byrd said. "My pitches were off considerably. I felt fine physically. We needed a win but the outing I gave today was the last thing we needed." Things began to look somewhat positive for the Phillies, who came into the weekend home stand after a 4-2 road trip that brought the team within 8½ games of the Braves. "It's tough because we had the opportunity to continue the good things we had accomplished on the road," Phillies managed Terry Francona said. "Now, we're back where we started when we began the homestand." Atlanta padded its lead to 6-0 in the second. Keith Lockhart opened with a single and, after straying too far off first on Burkett's fly ball, returned safely when Abreu's throw from right field was in the dirt. No error was charged, and the Braves took advantage when Furcal doubled in Lockhart and Andruw Jones hit his 10th home run. "It wasn't an error, but that play hurt," Francona said. "There's a huge difference between being down 3-0 and 6-0." Mark DeRosa had a three-run, pinch-hit double in the eighth, his first major league RBI.
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Atlanta 11
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