Brian McCann homered twice and the Atlanta Braves beat the Chicago Cubs 8-3 Thursday. 

McCann hit a three-run homer in the first and a solo shot in the seventh for his eighth career multi-homer game. Michael Bourn had a career high-tying four hits, scored two runs, and drove in a run.

Marlon Byrd homered and Tyler Colvin added a triple and a run for the Cubs, who committed four errors.

Brandon Beachy (7-2) won his fourth straight decision, recovering from a shaky start to pitch six innings. He allowed six hits, two earned runs and struck out eight. 

Matt Garza (6-10) allowed six runs — three earned — and eight hits over five innings. He struck out six. 

The Braves took three of four from the Cubs and have won 16 of their last 21 games. Atlanta won its NL-high 38th road game. 

Garza was coming off one of his best starts of the season in a 3-0 win over St. Louis last Saturday. 

After Bourn led off the game with a single, Martin Prado reached when Garza dropped a flip from Carlos Pena at first. Garza then fell behind McCann, who homered into a stiff wind in right-center and put the Braves ahead 3-0 before Garza had retired a batter. 

Prado reached on errors twice in the game, doubled, walked and scored two runs. 

The Cubs cut into the lead on Darwin Barney’s groundout in the bottom of the first. In the second, Byrd brought Cubs within a run with a homer to left. Colvin tripled into the right-field corner and scored on Geovany Soto’s dribbler, tying the game at 3. 

The Braves grabbed the lead right back with two runs in the third with help from the Cubs. Castro committed his NL-high 22nd error of the season and Garza walked Dan Uggla with the bases full. Freddie Freeman’s RBI single drove in the other run. 

The Braves tacked on a run in the fifth on Jason Heyward’s sacrifice fly and another on McCann’s solo shot in the seventh. McCann leads NL catchers with 22 home runs on the season. 

Bourn drove in a run in the eighth with his fourth single of the game, giving him his sixth career four-hit game. Bourn’s 160 hits are second in the NL to Castro’s 167. 

The Cubs have committed 108 errors this season, most in the majors. Four of Atlanta’s runs were unearned. 

NOTES: Cubs OF Alfonso Soriano was given a day off on Thursday after he was hit in the right forearm by a pitch during Wednesday’s game. Manager Mike Quade said Soriano was available for pinch-hitting duty and is expected to return to the lineup on Friday. . Braves RHP Tommy Hanson left the team and returned to Atlanta to have his ailing shoulder re-evaluated by team doctors. Hanson has been on the disabled list since Aug. 7 because of right rotator cuff tendinitis. . Manager Fredi Gonzalez said the Braves are “closely monitoring” Hurricane Irene and the effect it might have on this weekend’s series in New York against the Mets. . The Braves open a three-game series at New York on Friday, pitting RHP Tim Hudson against Mets lefty Chris Capuano. Hudson has won eight of his last nine decisions. . The Cubs will make the short trip north to face the first-place Brewers in Milwaukee this weekend, with Chicago RHP Rodrigo Lopez squaring off against LHP Randy Wolf in Friday’s opener. . Chicago’s Aramis Ramirez doubled in the eighth, his 700th career extra-base hit, and extended his hitting streak to 14 games.

Brian McCann homered twice and the Atlanta Braves beat the Chicago Cubs 8-3 Thursday.

McCann hit a three-run homer in the first and a solo shot in the seventh for his eighth career multi-homer game. Michael Bourn had a career high-tying four hits, scored two runs, and drove in a run.

Marlon Byrd homered and Tyler Colvin added a triple and a run for the Cubs, who committed four errors.

Brandon Beachy (7-2) won his fourth straight decision, recovering from a shaky start to pitch six innings. He allowed six hits, two earned runs and struck out eight.

Matt Garza (6-10) allowed six runs — three earned — and eight hits over five innings. He struck out six.

The Braves took three of four from the Cubs and have won 16 of their last 21 games. Atlanta won its NL-high 38th road game.

Garza was coming off one of his best starts of the season in a 3-0 win over St. Louis last Saturday.

After Bourn led off the game with a single, Martin Prado reached when Garza dropped a flip from Carlos Pena at first. Garza then fell behind McCann, who homered into a stiff wind in right-center and put the Braves ahead 3-0 before Garza had retired a batter.

Prado reached on errors twice in the game, doubled, walked and scored two runs.

The Cubs cut into the lead on Darwin Barney’s groundout in the bottom of the first. In the second, Byrd brought Cubs within a run with a homer to left. Colvin tripled into the right-field corner and scored on Geovany Soto’s dribbler, tying the game at 3.

The Braves grabbed the lead right back with two runs in the third with help from the Cubs. Castro committed his NL-high 22nd error of the season and Garza walked Dan Uggla with the bases full. Freddie Freeman’s RBI single drove in the other run.

The Braves tacked on a run in the fifth on Jason Heyward’s sacrifice fly and another on McCann’s solo shot in the seventh. McCann leads NL catchers with 22 home runs on the season.

Bourn drove in a run in the eighth with his fourth single of the game, giving him his sixth career four-hit game. Bourn’s 160 hits are second in the NL to Castro’s 167.

The Cubs have committed 108 errors this season, most in the majors. Four of Atlanta’s runs were unearned.

NOTES: Cubs OF Alfonso Soriano was given a day off on Thursday after he was hit in the right forearm by a pitch during Wednesday’s game. Manager Mike Quade said Soriano was available for pinch-hitting duty and is expected to return to the lineup on Friday. . Braves RHP Tommy Hanson left the team and returned to Atlanta to have his ailing shoulder re-evaluated by team doctors. Hanson has been on the disabled list since Aug. 7 because of right rotator cuff tendinitis. . Manager Fredi Gonzalez said the Braves are “closely monitoring” Hurricane Irene and the effect it might have on this weekend’s series in New York against the Mets. . The Braves open a three-game series at New York on Friday, pitting RHP Tim Hudson against Mets lefty Chris Capuano. Hudson has won eight of his last nine decisions. . The Cubs will make the short trip north to face the first-place Brewers in Milwaukee this weekend, with Chicago RHP Rodrigo Lopez squaring off against LHP Randy Wolf in Friday’s opener. . Chicago’s Aramis Ramirez doubled in the eighth, his 700th career extra-base hit, and extended his hitting streak to 14 games.

CHICAGO – Brian McCann homered twice and the Atlanta Braves beat the Chicago Cubs 8-3 Thursday.

McCann hit a three-run homer in the first and a solo shot in the seventh for his eighth career multi-homer game. Michael Bourn had a career high-tying four hits, scored two runs, and drove in a run.

Marlon Byrd homered and Tyler Colvin added a triple and a run for the Cubs, who committed four errors.

Brandon Beachy (7-2) won his fourth straight decision, recovering from a shaky start to pitch six innings. He allowed six hits, two earned runs and struck out eight.

Matt Garza (6-10) allowed six runs – three earned – and eight hits over five innings. He struck out six.

The Braves took three of four from the Cubs and have won 16 of their last 21 games. Atlanta won its NL-high 38th road game.

Garza was coming off one of his best starts of the season in a 3-0 win over St. Louis last Saturday.

After Bourn led off the game with a single, Martin Prado reached when Garza dropped a flip from Carlos Pena at first. Garza then fell behind McCann, who homered into a stiff wind in right-center and put the Braves ahead 3-0 before Garza had retired a batter.

Prado reached on errors twice in the game, doubled, walked and scored two runs.

The Cubs cut into the lead on Darwin Barney’s groundout in the bottom of the first. In the second, Byrd brought Cubs within a run with a homer to left. Colvin tripled into the right-field corner and scored on Geovany Soto’s dribbler, tying the game at 3.

The Braves grabbed the lead right back with two runs in the third with help from the Cubs. Castro committed his NL-high 22nd error of the season and Garza walked Dan Uggla with the bases full. Freddie Freeman’s RBI single drove in the other run.

The Braves tacked on a run in the fifth on Jason Heyward’s sacrifice fly and another on McCann’s solo shot in the seventh. McCann leads NL catchers with 22 home runs on the season.

Bourn drove in a run in the eighth with his fourth single of the game, giving him his sixth career four-hit game. Bourn’s 160 hits are second in the NL to Castro’s 167.

The Cubs have committed 108 errors this season, most in the majors. Four of Atlanta’s runs were unearned.

NOTES: Cubs OF Alfonso Soriano was given a day off on Thursday after he was hit in the right forearm by a pitch during Wednesday’s game. Manager Mike Quade said Soriano was available for pinch-hitting duty and is expected to return to the lineup on Friday. . Braves RHP Tommy Hanson left the team and returned to Atlanta to have his ailing shoulder re-evaluated by team doctors. Hanson has been on the disabled list since Aug. 7 because of right rotator cuff tendinitis. . Manager Fredi Gonzalez said the Braves are “closely monitoring” Hurricane Irene and the effect it might have on this weekend’s series in New York against the Mets. . The Braves open a three-game series at New York on Friday, pitting RHP Tim Hudson against Mets lefty Chris Capuano. Hudson has won eight of his last nine decisions. . The Cubs will make the short trip north to face the first-place Brewers in Milwaukee this weekend, with Chicago RHP Rodrigo Lopez squaring off against LHP Randy Wolf in Friday’s opener. . Chicago’s Aramis Ramirez doubled in the eighth, his 700th career extra-base hit, and extended his hitting streak to 14 games.

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.

ATLANTA (AP) — Julio Lugo scored from third base on a contested play at the plate, giving the Atlanta Braves a 4-3 win in 19 innings over the Pittsburgh Pirates early Wednesday morning.

The game, which ended at 1:50 2 a.m., was the longest in Turner Field history and matched the longest in the major leagues this season. At 6 hours, 39 minutes, it was the longest by time for both teams.

Lugo took on Scott Proctor’s grounder to third baseman Pedro Alvarez, whose throw to catcher Michael McKenry easily beat Lugo to the plate.

Lugo tried to avoid McKenry’s tag with a pop-up slide. Replays indicated McKenry made the tag, but home plate umpire Jerry Meals called Lugo safe.

Pirates manager Clint Hurdle argued the call vigorously, following Meals off the field as the Braves celebrated.

With one out in the 19th, Daniel McCutchen walked Lugo. Jordan Schafer followed with a single to center, moving Lugo to third.

With their bench and bullpen depleted, the Braves had to let Proctor (2-3), their eighth pitcher of the game, hit for himself. Schafer advanced to second without a throw before Proctor’s grounder led to the final play.

The Phillies and Reds played 19 innings on May 25.

The Pirates’ previous longest game was 6:12 at San Diego on Aug. 25, 1979. The Braves’ previous longest game by time was 6:10 against the Mets on July 4, 1985, at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.

The Pirates scored two runs in the first and pushed their lead to 3-0 in the second on McKenry’s homer. The Braves answered with three runs in the third, and the score remained 3-3 through the next 15 innings.

Several thousand fans from the announced crowd of 22,036 were still in the stands in the 19th inning, many standing and chanting.

The Braves lost catcher Brian McCann in the 10th inning when he strained his left oblique. He will be placed on the 15-day disabled list on Wednesday.

McCutchen (3-2) gave up one run in 5 1-3 innings.

The Pirates fell one game behind first-place St. Louis in the NL Central.

The Pirates had a chance to avoid extra innings but wasted a scoring chance in the ninth. McKenry had an infield single off Craig Kimbrel and moved to third on pinch-hitter Brandon Wood’s single.

The Braves called a pitchout as Xavier Paul was squaring to bunt and McKenry was running toward the plate. McKenry stopped too late and was thrown out at third. Kimbrel struck out Paul to end the inning.

Atlanta’s Chipper Jones, who strained his right quadriceps in Monday night’s game, hit a groundout as a pinch-hitter in the eighth.

Jones, 39, came off the 15-day disabled list on Monday following arthroscopic surgery on July 9 to repair torn cartilage in his right knee.

Nate McLouth and manager Fredi Gonzalez were ejected by Meals in the ninth. McLouth struck out swinging and then remained at the plate, apparently to argue a called strike two by Meals. Gonzalez ran onto the field too late to intervene and keep McLouth in the game.

NOTES: It was the Pirates’ longest game since May 27, 2006, when they beat Houston 8-7 in 18 innings. It was the Braves’ longest since Oct. 5, 2006, when they won 7-6 at Houston in 18 innings…. McKenry ended the Pirates’ streak of 77 innings without a homer since a shot by Brandon Wood at Houston on July 16. … Schafer, still bothered by his jammed left middle finger he hurt Wednesday in Colorado, was scratched from the Braves’ lineup. He entered the game in the ninth as a defensive replacement in center. … Pirates C Ryan Doumit (left ankle sprain) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis.