Vazquez sharp as Braves beat Cardinals

By DAVID O'BRIEN

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

St. Louis -- The Braves punctuated a did-that-really-happen weekend in St. Louis with a six-run inning Sunday against Cardinals ace Chris Carpenter -- an inning so extraordinary and invigorating, it had some in the clubhouse thinking of another remote possibility.

Braves in the postseason. (OK, stop laughing.)

"Until you're mathematically eliminated, you hope for a miracle," said Matt Diaz, who had a two-run single in a six-run third that propelled Javier Vazquez and the Braves to a 9-2 win and series sweep of the previously sizzling Cardinals at Busch Stadium, with Vazquez throwing a complete-game gem.

Something miraculous is about what it would take for the Braves to make the postseason. They are third in National League East, a game behind Florida and seven behind Philadelphia before the Phillies' Sunday doubleheader nightcap against the Mets. With only 19 games to play.

But after capping a 5-1 trip by snapping Carpenter's 11-game winning streak and handing the Cardinals their first sweep in eight weeks, the Braves felt better about themselves than they had since a recent five-game losing jag diminished their playoff chances.

Vazquez (13-9) pitched a three-hit shutout through eight innings, but he had to settle for a seven-hitter (all singles) in the first nine-inning complete game by a Braves pitcher this season. He had eight strikeouts and no walks and went to a three-ball count once.

"One of the best games I've ever seen pitched through eight innings," Braves manager Bobby Cox said. "Reminded me of some of the [Greg] Maddux games."

Vazquez threw 79 pitches through eight innings, before surrendering four consecutive singles to start the ninth, including an Albert Pujols hit that should've been caught by left fielder Reid Gorecki.

"I don't remember throwing a complete game in less than 100 pitches," said Vazquez, who threw 75 strikes in 94 pitches in his 25th complete game and second this season (he had an eight-inning complete game in a loss at Cincinnati).

Vazquez has 216 strikeouts in 197-1/3 innings, second-highest strikeouts total of his career (241 strikeouts for Montreal in 2003).

"The guys scoring that many runs off Carpenter made it easier," he said with typical modesty. "Give our guys a lot of props for going out there and having quality at-bats against a guy like Carpenter."

Nate McLouth had four hits and Adam LaRoche had three RBIs and his 23rd homer (22nd in the NL), including 10 homers in 39 games for Atlanta.

Carpenter (16-4) allowed a season-high seven runs and nine hits in six innings, including a career-high six earned runs in the third on six hits and a walk -- all with two outs.

"We did a lot of hitting against a great pitcher," Cox said of Carpenter, who was 11-0 with a 1.97 ERA in his previous 13 starts.

After Carpenter retired the first two in the third, McLouth singled to start a parade of seven Braves who reached base on six hits and a walk, including two-RBI hits by LaRoche, Yunel Escobar and Diaz.

"We had a big inning, for sure," said Kelly Johnson, who doubled in the inning. "Doing all that with two outs - that was the game, right there. We just put together some good at-bats and big hits."

They swept the powerful Cardinals, a week after the Braves were swept at home by Cincinnati during a five-game skid that came at the worst time, when they needed wins to stay in the wild-card race.

"It's been said a couple of times in [the clubhouse], 'Cincinnati beat us and home, and we come in and sweep St. Louis?'," Diaz said. He added, "Crazy things happened in the third inning. We can pray the last three weeks are just as crazy."