Phillies snap two-game skid

Kevin Jordan didn`t know how to react – he hadn`t hit a grand slam before.

Jordan`s pinch-hit slam capped a six-run seventh inning as the Philadelphia Phillies snapped a two-game losing skid with an 8-3 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Friday night.

"That was the fastest I`d ever seen anyone run around the bases," Phillies manager Larry Bowa said.

Jordan heard the crowd of 16,245 at Veterans Stadium call him out for a curtain call, but wasn`t about to respond.

"I wouldn`t know what to do," said Jordan, who doesn`t even remember hitting a grand slam in Little League. "I`ve never gone out there before. I didn`t want to embarrass myself."

The Phillies, who tied the Chicago Cubs for the worst record in the majors last season, are in first place in the NL East at 9-6.

Wayne Gomes (2-0) pitched a scoreless seventh for the win. Phillies starter Omar Daal, a 19-game loser last season, allowed two runs and five hits in six innings.

"I don`t feel any pressure," Daal said. "I know we`re going to score. I just have to keep the game close."

Andruw Jones homered and Chipper Jones added an RBI double for the Braves, who had won four of six. Atlanta (8-9) is under .500 this late in the season for the first time since starting 12-13 in 1993.

The Braves had allowed just one earned run in the last eight games before giving up eight to Philadelphia.

"They made good pitches that could have gotten us out of the inning," Braves manager Bobby Cox said about the seventh. "One ball hit the seam and the other took a crazy hop."

Mike Lieberthal`s bad-hop single off shortstop Rafael Furcal`s chest scored Jimmy Rollins, giving the Phillies a 3-2 lead in the seventh against Odalis Perez (1-2).

After Pat Burrell`s fielder`s choice – on a ball that took a tough bounce on Quilvio Veras – scored Bobby Abreu to make it 4-2, Marlon Anderson was intentionally walked to load the bases. Jordan – batting for Gomes – then drilled a 1-0 pitch off Marc Valdes into the left-field bullpen.

It was Philadelphia`s 11th home run of the season and the first that wasn`t a solo shot.

"We had a good chance to get two double plays and didn`t get either," Perez said. "It`s all part of the game."

Braves right-hander Kevin Millwood allowed two runs and eight hits in six innings. He struck out two and walked two.

Atlanta`s starters have a 1.15 ERA over the last nine games.

Andruw Jones gave the Braves a 1-0 lead in the first when he drilled a hanging changeup off Daal into the left-field bullpen for his fourth homer. Jones walked to lead off the sixth and scored on an RBI double by Chipper Jones to make it 2-0.

The Phillies tied it in the sixth on RBI singles by Burrell and pinch-hitter Rob Ducey. Abreu led off with a double, moved to third on a single by Travis Lee and scored on Burrell`s liner to right.

After Anderson flied out to shallow left, Ducey blooped a single just out of the reach of Chipper Jones, who overran the ball while trying to make an over-the-shoulder catch.

Philadelphia`s pinch-hitters are 11-for-24 this season, including four hits in seven at-bats for Jordan.

"He`s always ready," Bowa said. "He can be 0-for-20 and he`s out there working harder than anyone. He takes extra grounders, extra hitting. He`s as prepared as anybody."

Millwood escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the third by striking out Abreu and getting Lieberthal to hit into a fielder`s choice.

Game notes:
Philadelphia`s bullpen, which had a league-worst 37 losses and 5.72 ERA last season, is 7-1 with a 2.11 ERA. ... The Phillies have scored just three runs in the first five innings of the last seven games. ... Andruw Jones, who stole 21 bases last year, has yet to attempt a steal this season.

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Author: 6 ABC - Action News (AP)