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Tuesday, Jun. 20 7:40pm ET
Chipper's blasts boost Braves | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
ATLANTA (AP) -- Chipper Jones knew something good was going to happen.
The third baseman felt so good, he thought he was going to get four or five hits. "I had a premonition I was going to go 4-for-4 or 5-for-5, not hit two home runs. But I'll take them," said Jones, a lock to start for the NL All-Stars next month when the game is played in Atlanta. Quilvio Veras went 4-for-5, scored three runs and knocked in three, Andruw Jones had a pair of hits -- including his 19th homer -- scored three times and drove in three runs, and Brian Jordan went 3-for-4 with an RBI in Atlanta's 14-hit attack. "Chipper had a great game with the two home runs, and we got a lot of key hits," Jordan said. The Braves, coming off a dismal 3-5 road trip against the Pittsburgh Pirates and Philadelphia Phillies, lost four of five before coming to life against the Cubs and right-hander Kevin Tapani. "It felt great especially after our disappointing game last night (5-2 loss) in Philadelphia to come back home and get back on track," Jordan said. Chipper Jones, who matched his career high by getting a hit in his 18th consecutive game, capped a four-run second inning off Tapani with a shot into the right-center field stands, the fourth longest home run hit at Turner Field. Former Brave Ryan Klesko has the longest at 449 feet. Chipper Jones added his second two-run shot in the fourth off Steven Rain, a line drive into the left-field stands, his 18th homer of the season. "Nothing surprises me about Chipper. When he's swinging from the left side, he's always dangerous," said Cubs manager Don Baylor, the Braves' hitting coach last season. "I've felt really good at the plate the last week or so," Jones said. "When I'm getting my pitch, I haven't been missing it." Millwood (5-6) last won on May 17. He was 0-4 with two no-decisions and a 10.12 ERA during that span, but has thrown two straight decent games. The right-hander gave up one run in six innings of a 2-0 loss in his last start against Pittsburgh. "For the second game in a row I can say I pitched a pretty good game," Millwood said. "I'm feeling pretty good now and my confidence is building." Millwood gave up four hits, one run, walked one and struck out six, including Sammy Sosa twice, in six innings. The Cubs' only run off Millwood came in the fourth on a leadoff double by Mark Grace, a wild pitch and Henry Rodriguez's sacrifice fly. Tapani (4-7) lasted only two innings, giving up seven hits and six runs. The right-hander was struck in the right heel by a liner off the bat of Andruw Jones in the second inning, which may have had something to do with his poor outing. "It was very minor. It went to sleep for a little bit," Tapani said. "It went numb. I don't think that had anything to do with what happened." Veras led off the Braves' first with a double, and Andruw Jones followed with the shot that caromed off Tapani's right heel into right field for an RBI double. After several warmup tosses, Tapani signaled he was all right and continued. Two outs later, Jordan singled to right, scoring Jones. Veras had a two-run single in the second and an RBI double in a three-run sixth. Andruw Jones followed with his two-run homer over the left-field wall off reliever Daniel Garibay. Eric Young was 4-for-4 for the Cubs. Chicago's other three runs came on a solo home run in the eighth by pinch-hitter Gary Matthews Jr., the first of his career, and RBI hits by Sosa and Joe Girardi. Matthews is the son of former major leaguer Gary Matthews, who played with five major league clubs, including the Cubs and Braves. Game notesChipper Jones' hitting streak is the longest for the Braves this season and equaled his longest, set in August 1996. It's the longest for Atlanta since Marquis Grissom hit in 28 straight in 1996. The two-homer game was the 15th career for Jones. ... Veras' four hits matched his career best, done four previous times. ... Tapani worked at least seven innings in each of his previous nine starts. The two innings pitched gave him 2,000 1-3 for his career. ... Ismael Valdes, scheduled to start Thursday against the Braves, instead will start on Saturday at Florida to give a blister on his pitching finger more time to heal. Left-hander Scott Downs will replace Valdes on Thursday. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Chicago Cubs Clubhouse Atlanta Clubhouse RECAPS Oakland 8 Baltimore 5
Atlanta 11
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