AP Sports Writer
Posted: May 15, 2008 12:17 a.m.
PHILADELPHIA — Tom Glavine pitched 5 2-3 effective innings to earn his first win for Atlanta in six years and the Braves held on for an 8-6 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday night.
Chipper Jones, Yunel Escobar and Kelly Johnson each hit solo homers and Brian McCann drove in three runs to support Glavine, who hadn’t won a game with the Braves since beating the Phillies on Sept. 19, 2002.
Blaine Boyer got the last four outs for his first career save. He allowed an RBI single to Jimmy Rollins in the ninth, before retiring Shane Victorino on a fly ball to the warning track with the tying run on second base to end it. Boyer is the fifth Braves reliever to record a save this season.
Chase Utley hit his major league-leading 14th homer and Ryan Howard also connected for Philadelphia.
Glavine (1-1) allowed four runs and four hits. He took a one-hitter into the sixth before the Phillies cut an 8-0 deficit in half. Glavine spent the previous five seasons with the New York Mets after pitching his first 16 years in Atlanta.
For most of the night, Glavine was in vintage form. He kept hitters off balance with an assortment of slow stuff and pinpoint control.
Meanwhile, the Braves teed off on Brett Myers (2-4).
Escobar led off with a homer and Jones hit an opposite-field drive one batter later to make it 2-0. Johnson connected in the second and McCann’s two-run double in the third put the Braves ahead 5-0.
Myers left to a chorus of boos in the fifth, and sat by himself in the dugout. He allowed eight runs and nine hits in 4 1-3 innings.
Myers’ return to the starting rotation hasn’t gone smoothly. His 5.91 ERA is the worst on the staff. He had success as a closer last year and thoroughly enjoyed the role, but he became a starter again after the Phillies acquired Brad Lidge from Houston. Lidge is 10-for-10 in save chances with a 0.50 ERA.
Trailing 8-0, the Phillies finally got to Glavine in the sixth. Rollins had an RBI double, Victorino drove in a run on a groundout and Utley hit a two-run shot.
Howard hit an opposite-field drive off Royce Ring to cut it to 8-5 in the eighth. The struggling 2006 NL MVP is showing some signs of breaking out. He has a six-game hitting streak, raising his average to a paltry .182.
Notes: Phillies C Chris Coste was 4-for-4, tying his career-best for hits. ... Glavine is 29-17 in 65 starts against the Phillies. ... The Phillies are 9-7 against left-handed starters. ... When Chuck James takes the mound on Thursday night, it’ll mark the first time the Braves start three straight left-handers since June 4-6, 1997. It was Glavine, Denny Neagle and Terrell Wade 11 years ago. ... Philadelphia’s Greg Dobbs got his ninth pinch-hit, a single with two outs in the ninth.
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