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Brett Hayes congratulates Leo Nunez (right) of the Florida Marlins after their 3-1 win over the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field on July 31, 2011 in Atlanta.

By Joe Capozzi

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

ATLANTA — The Marlins seemed to defy the laws of mathematics Sunday in their 3-1 win over the Braves.

Ricky Nolasco gave up 12 hits in less than seven innings. Emilio Bonifacio connected for his third home run in 1,168 career at-bats. It somehow added up to the final tally during a 17-10 July after a disastrous 5-23 June.

“If you allow 12 hits and still win, you’re all right. He was tough,’ manager Jack McKeon said after Nolasco helped the Marlins improve to 4-2 on their road trip.

Nolasco, who allowed the first batter to reach base in six of the seven innings he started, became the first Marlins pitcher since Livan Hernandez in 1999 to allow one run on at least 12 hits and still win.

“It happened,’ he said. “Don’t know how, but it did.’

On a 90-degree day at Turner Field, Nolasco survived Atlanta’s double-digit hit attack because he was able to pitch out of trouble and, more important, didn’t issue any walks.

“I kept getting singled to death. Everything just fell in the holes,’ he said after going 6 2/3 innings. “I’d rather give up 12 hits and no walks and than eight hits and four walks every time. If they’re going to go keep hitting ground balls and finding their way through in the infield, I’ll take my chances with that.’

Nolasco’s most impressive inning was in the sixth, after Atlanta’s first two batters singled to put runners at the corners. Nolasco got Alex Gonzalez to pop out to second. Then, he struck out both J.C. Boscan and pinch-hitter Chipper Jones, who was 15-for-35 (.429) in his career against Nolasco.

“I knew Fredi (Gonzalez, Atlanta’s manager) was going to pull that one out of his sleeve just because the history Chipper has had with me,’ Nolasco said. “I looked over when I was head in the count (against Boscan) and I had seen (Julio) Lugo (on-deck) and I said, ‘There’s no way he’s there. I guarantee Chipper’s gonna come up if I strike this guy out here.’ And as soon as I struck him out, I saw (Jones) walking up the steps.

“It was fun. It was good adrenaline builder. I’m just glad I was able to get him. For once.’

Nolasco’s day got off to an ominous start. Rookie Jose Constanza hit his first pitch of the game for a double in the first inning. He advanced to third on Martin Prado’s single and scored when Freddie Freeman bounced into a double play.

It turned out to be the only Atlanta run, even though the Braves threatened all afternoon.

In the fourth inning, the Braves had runners at first and third with one out but couldn’t score. Nolasco struck out Boscan and got pitcher Tommy Hanson to bounce out.

With a two-run lead, Nolasco put himself in a tough spot in the fifth inning when he fielded Constanza’s bunt and threw the ball past first base and into right field.

Constanza tried to advance to third but was gunned down by Omar Infante.

Catcher Brett Hayes also made a quick reaction and made a diving snag of a short pop up when Hanson tried to bunt with two on in the second inning.

Hanley Ramirez manufactured Florida’s first run when he led off the second inning with a walk. He stole second, tagged up on a fly out and scored on Mike Stanton’s single.

With slumping Logan Morrison on the bench for the day, Greg Dobbs got another start and doubled in the third inning to score Infante with Florida’s second run.

Bonifacio hooked his second homer of the year inside the right field foul pole in fifth inning. It was his just his second career home run to leave the park, including a shot in Cincinnati on May 1. (His first career homer was an inside-the-park grand slam on opening day 2009.)

“He’s got the power,’ McKeon said, laughing with sarcasm. “I’d just as soon see him go back and bunt.’

The Marlins are two-thirds of the way through the season as they head to New York to open a three-game series Monday against the Mets.

“We’re still in a position where we’re battling clubs that are far more superior and right now they’re ahead of us,’ McKeon said.

“We’ve got our hands full but it’s nice to be 17-10 (in July). Hopefully we’ll go 17-10 (in August) and we’ll be all right. It’s not an easy task. It’s an uphill battle.’

ATLANTA — The Atlanta Braves have acquired outfielder Michael Bourn from the Houston Astros in a five-player trade.

The Astros received outfielder Jordan Schafer and three minor league pitchers in Sunday’s deal. The 28-year-old Bourn, a two-time Gold Glove winner, is hitting .303 and leads the majors with 39 stolen bases.

Braves general manager Frank Wren says Bourn gives the Braves the true leadoff hitter the team has lacked. Schafer and others have been tried in that role this season.

The Astros also receive right-handers Juan Abreu and Paul Clemens and left-hander Brett Oberholtzer. Wren calls Bourn a “perfect fit for our club.”

Schafer is on the 15-day disabled list with a finger injury. The Braves also placed catcher Brian McCann and outfielder Nate McLouth on the disabled list this week.

The Atlanta Braves’ biggest offseason addition is finally coming up with big hits.

Dan Uggla belted a tiebreaking three-run homer in the seventh inning, Brandon Beachy combined with two relievers on a three-hitter and Atlanta beat Florida 5-0 on Friday night to end the Marlins’ five-game winning streak.

Uggla extended his hitting streak to 20 games and leads Atlanta with 19 homers. He entered July with a .176 batting average but is up to .206 after going 1 for 4 against Florida.

“It really felt good,” Uggla said. “I tried not to put too much on it other than it put us ahead and put us in position to win.”

The Braves acquired Uggla, a native of Columbia, from Florida over the winter, sending left-hander Mike Dunn and infielder Omar Infante to the Marlins.

The Braves remained five games behind NL East-leading Philadelphia, which beat Pittsburgh 10-3 and acquired All-Star right fielder Hunter Pence from Houston.

“They’re good. They’re making every move you can make to go for it,” Uggla said of the Phillies.

“They’re a good team, but we are, too, and there are a lot of other good teams that are going to make the playoffs.”

Emilio Bonifacio’s 26-game hitting streak, the second-longest in Marlins history, came to an end. After two strikeouts, Bonifacio was thrown out trying to bunt his way on, then grounded out to third in the eighth.

Marlins Manager Jack McKeon said he thought Bonifacio was thinking about the streak early in the game.

“I talked to him. I said ‘Hey, start a new streak,’ ” McKeon said. “He went up there trying to get that hit that first time. Hey, stay with your game. … The first time I really felt that he really thought about it.”

Beachy (4-2) yielded two hits, walked three and struck out six in 71/3 innings. He pitched into the eighth for the first time in his career.

“Outstanding performance,” Braves Manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “He went up and down the strike zone, down and in.

”He was dominant today.“

Eric O’Flaherty recorded the final two outs in the eighth and Scott Linebrink pitched around Gaby Sanchez’s one-out double in the ninth, striking out Logan Morrison to end the game.

Jose Constanza, recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett before the game, had a run-scoring single against Dunn in the eighth for his first hit in the major leagues. Constanza scored from third on Freddie Freeman’s fly ball to left.

Clay Hensley (1-3) matched Beachy before fading quickly in the seventh. Hensley gave up three runs and five hits in seven innings.

by

Charles Odum, Associated Press

Atlanta Braves

ATLANTA — While Freddie Freeman continues to add to his Rookie of the Year credentials, the Braves’ biggest offseason addition, Dan Uggla, is finally coming up with big hits, too.

Uggla belted a tiebreaking three-run homer in the seventh inning, and Brandon Beachy combined with two relievers on a three-hitter to help the Braves beat Florida 5-0 on Friday night in the series opener.

Freeman went 2-for-3 with a run scored and an RBI while raising his batting average to .295 and raising his RBI total to 52.

The Braves’ victory ended the Marlins’ five-game winning streak.

Uggla extended his hitting streak to 20 games and leads Atlanta with 19 homers. He entered July with a .176 batting average but is up to .206 after going 1-for-4 on Friday.

“It really felt good,” Uggla said.

“I tried not to put too much on it other than it put us ahead and put us in position to win.”

The Braves acquired Uggla from Florida over the winter, sending left-hander Mike Dunn and infielder Omar Infante to the Marlins.

The Braves remained five games behind the NL East-leading Philadelphia Phillies, who beat Pittsburgh 10-3 on Friday and also acquired All-Star right fielder Hunter Pence from Houston.

“They’re good. They’re making every move you can make to go for it,” Uggla said of the Phillies. “They’re a good team, but we are, too, and there are a lot of other good teams that are going to make the playoffs.”

Emilio Bonifacio’s 26-game hitting streak came to an end with an 0-for-4 night.

It was the second-longest in Marlins history.

Beachy (4-2) yielded two hits, walked three and struck out six in 7 1-3 innings. He pitched into the eighth for the first time in his career.

“Outstanding performance,” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “He went up and down the strike zone, down and in. He was dominant today.”

Eric O’Flaherty recorded the final two outs in the eighth and Scott Linebrink pitched around Gaby Sanchez’s one-out double in the ninth, striking out Logan Morrison to end the game.

Jose Constanza, recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett before the game, had a run-scoring single against Dunn in the eighth for his first hit in the major leagues.

Constanza scored from third on Freeman’s fly ball to left.

Uggla connected on an 0-1 pitch from Hensley, raising his right fist in the air as the ball cleared the wall in center.

NOTE: Uggla’s hitting streak is the longest for the Braves since Kelly Johnson hit in 22 straight games from Sept. 1-24, 2008.

Clay Hensley achieved his goal of lasting longer than five innings. It just wasn’t good enough to beat Brandon Beachy on Friday night.

Hensley surrendered a tiebreaking three-run homer by Dan Uggla in the seventh inning and the Florida Marlins managed just three hits against Beachy and two relievers, losing 5-0 to the Atlanta Braves to end their five-game winning streak.

Hensley (1-3) gave up two hits in the first before retiring 16 straight. The streak ended when Martin Prado, who had three hits, led off the seventh with a single up the middle. Freeman followed with another single to center and Prado made it to third with a headfirst slide.

Uggla then connected on an 0-1 pitch, raising his right fist in the air as the ball cleared the wall in center.

“He dropped the barrel on it,” Hensley said. “It wasn’t really that bad of a pitch. He kind of went out there and got it. He’s a good hitter. We all saw that last year.

“He’s one of my best friends. We’ll have some words about that later.”

The Braves acquired Uggla from the Marlins in an offseason trade.

Hensley gave up three runs and five hits in seven innings. He lasted only five innings in each of his first two starts in his return from a right shoulder strain.

“I felt pretty good,” Hensley said. “One of the goals going into this start was to limit the walks if not have any. I wanted to concentrate on strikes and give myself a chance to go deep in the game.

“So I’m happy about that. I’m happy I went out there and got ahead of guys and I didn’t walk anybody tonight.”

Emilio Bonifacio’s 26-game hitting streak, the second-longest in Marlins history, came to an end. After two strikeouts, Bonifacio was thrown out trying to bunt his way on base, then grounded out to third in the eighth.

Marlins manager Jack McKeon said he thought Bonifacio was thinking about the streak early in the game.

“I talked to him. I said ‘Hey, start a new streak,’” McKeon said. “He went up there trying to get that hit that first time. Hey, stay with your game. … The first time I really felt that he really thought about it.”

Uggla extended his hitting streak to 20 games and leads Atlanta with 19 homers. He entered July with a .176 batting average but is up to .206 after going 1 for 4 against Florida.

“It really felt good,” Uggla said. “I tried not to put too much on it other than it put us ahead and put us in position to win.”

Beachy (4-2) yielded two hits, walked three and struck out six in 7 1-3 innings. He pitched into the eighth for the first time in his career.

“Outstanding performance,” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “He went up and down the strike zone, down and in.

“He was dominant today.”

Eric O’Flaherty recorded the final two outs in the eighth and Scott Linebrink pitched around Gaby Sanchez’s one-out double in the ninth, striking out Logan Morrison to end the game.

Jose Constanza, recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett before the game, had a run-scoring single off Marlins left-hander Mike Dunn in the eighth for his first hit in the major leagues. Constanza scored from third on Freddie Freeman’s fly ball to left.

Constanza replaced Nate McLouth as the leadoff hitter and center fielder after the veteran was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a lower abdominal strain.

McLouth is the third Atlanta player to be placed on the disabled list this week. Catcher Brian McCann (strained left oblique) and outfielder Jordan Schafer (finger) were shelved on Wednesday.

Also, third baseman Chipper Jones missed his fourth straight start with a strained right quadriceps.

With two outs in the seventh, Constanza misjudged a fly ball hit by Mike Stanton, drifting back before reversing his direction and charging toward the infield too late to make the catch. Stanton made it to second for a double.

Beachy escaped when left fielder Eric Hinske made a leaping catch of Mike Cameron’s line drive two steps in front of the wall, ending the inning.

Sanchez returned for Florida after missing three starts with a tight left hamstring.

NOTES: Uggla’s streak is the longest for the Braves since Kelly Johnson hit in 22 straight games from Sept. 1-24, 2008. … Braves INF Diory Hernandez was designated for assignment to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Constanza. … Marlins OF Chris Coghlan, on the 15-day disabled list since June 17 with left knee inflammation, hyperextended his right elbow and is expected to stop his rehab for three to five days. … Freeman, who had two hits, has a 13-game hitting streak.