Bench gives Braves big lift in 6-3 win

By Carroll Rogers

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Braves shifted into their low-gear lineup for a lazy Sunday afternoon at Turner Field. Only there’s a hitch. Really, that just means it’s a chance for the Braves’ bench to shine.

David Ross, who gave Brian McCann the day off at catcher, and Omar Infante, playing second for the injured Martin Prado, hit home runs to lead the Braves to a 6-3 win over the Giants.

The Braves took three out of four from the Giants to wrap up the home stand 5-2. By winning series over both the Mets and Giants, the Braves kept their two-game lead on the Phillies, who beat the Mets 6-5 on Sunday.

“We had three of our regulars out there,” said manager Bobby Cox, who was able to rest McCann, Chipper Jones, Jason Heyward and closer Billy Wagner. “It looks like it’s a weaker team, but it’s not.”

Cox likes having three big bats to bring off the bench in the late innings. But Sunday, all three could try to keep cool in the dugout.

Ross hit his first home run of the season, a two-run shot, for a 2-1 lead in the second inning. Melky Cabrera, starting in right for Heyward, went 3-for-5 and drove in Ross with a key insurance run in the eighth. Brooks Conrad, getting the start at third base, went 2-for-4 and drove in a run on a bases-loaded single in the fifth.

“It’s easy to say there’s a letdown,” Ross said. “But when you have the guys, the no-names, sometimes that plays more into your favor with (opposing pitchers) not knowing what they’re going to do.”

Ross, who had seven home runs last season, collected his first of the year.

“All these guys were giving me (grief), so I got that off my chest now,” said Ross, who snapped a homerless streak at 99 at-bats, back to Sept. 6 against Cincinnati. “I thought I was getting old, that I didn’t have my pop anymore.”

Infante’s solo home run in the fourth extended his hitting streak to 11 games, including the past 10 while filling in for Prado.

This backup-laden lineup has served the Braves well all season. The Braves moved to 15-1 in day games at Turner Field this season and 7-1 on Sunday day games at home.

Derek Lowe took the win but lasted only 5 1/3 innings and 68 pitches because of cramps in his right hamstring. But as a team, the Braves took advantage of being better acclimated to the heat, which with the heat index reached the upper 90s Sunday.

“You take a team like San Francisco that plays in 50-degree weather, you throw them in this heat for four straight days and add a day game at the end of it…,” Lowe said. “I definitely think it’s a home field advantage. I know coming from LA, you dreaded pitching here because of the heat.”

Lowe said his cramps started in his right arm in the fourth inning. By the sixth, they had moved to his hamstring.

“First time in the two years I’ve been here that I had to leave with cramps, which is disappointing,” said Lowe, who is expected to be fine for his next start. “It couldn’t have happened on a worse day. I was finally pitching decent.”

Lowe gave up two runs on five hits, while getting 10 groundball outs. He got a pair of nice double plays behind him, one on a line drive caught by Infante in the first inning and another in the second by Alex Gonzalez, who used his glove to field and toss to second.

The Giants closed to within 5-3 after scoring a run on two Braves errors in the sixth and a homer by Travis Ishikawa off Peter Moylan in the seventh. But Jonny Venters and Takashi Saito nailed it down.

Saito pitched a scoreless ninth to pick up his first save of the season and keep in theme with giving regulars a rest.

“This is the ultimate team,” Lowe said. “We need all 25 guys to play well and to pick each other up.”