Kotchman leads Braves past Phillies

Philadelphia — Casey Kotchman’s neck was stiff as a board, Greg Norton’s right elbow was a bloody mess and Chipper Jones’ right elbow was too sore to throw.

Collateral damage. What mattered most to the Braves late Sunday afternoon was that they and Kenshin Kawakami notched a 4-2 win over Philadelphia at Citizens Bank Park, making for their second series win this season against the reigning World Series champions.

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AP

First-base umpire James Hoye signals fair ball after Braves’ right fielder Jeff Francoeur cannot field a hit by the Phillies’ Miguel Cairo in the ninth.

CHIPPER'S STREAK HALTED
For the first time since April 5, 2007, Chipper Jones failed to have a hit against the Phillies ending a 29-game hitting streak against Philadelphia. Other notable streaks against one team:
• 44: Vladimir Guerrero, vs. TEX, 4/09/2004-8/04/2006
• 35: Ken Griffey Jr., vs. CLE, 5/24/1992-8/06/1996
• 34: George Bell, vs. CLE, 6/01/1985-8/08/1987
• 32: Paul Molitor, vs. CHI AL, 5/01/1993-9/20/1996
• 29: Chipper Jones, vs. PHI, 4/5/2007-5/9/2009
Source: Society for American Baseball Research

BY THE NUMBERS

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Kotchman had three hits and drove in the Braves’ final three runs. Kawakami (2-4) snapped a four-start skid. And the Braves improved to 4-1 on a trip that continues Monday against Johan Santana and the first-place New York Mets at Citi Field.

“We’ve won four out of five — that’s a good start,” said manager Bobby Cox, whose Braves swept two at Florida before taking two of three from the Phillies.

They are 4-2 against the Phillies, after finishing 4-14 against them in 2008.

“We’re rolling right along,” said Braves closer Mike Gonzalez, who worked the eighth inning Sunday instead of the ninth because the Phillies had left-handed sluggers Ryan Howard, Raul Ibanez and Matt Stairs coming to bat in the eighth.

Gonzalez got two flyouts and walked Stairs before Pedro Feliz grounded out. Right-hander Rafael Soriano worked a scoreless ninth for his third save.

That may be an unusually creative strategy for Cox, but the venerable manager said the Braves would use it again as warranted. Gonzalez might pitch the eighth inning, or even earlier, if an opponent has potent lefty hitters due up.

“I totally understand that [move],” Gonzalez said. “I just want to win.”

The Braves also got a perfect seventh inning from lefty Eric O’Flaherty, who has quieted skeptics so far.

Kawakami had his best start since a win in his major league debut, allowing five hits, two runs and four walks with six strikeouts in six innings. Cox called it “another gutty game” for the 33-year-old Japanese rookie.

Kawakami had been 0-4 with a 6.97 ERA in his previous four starts but had done impressive damage control last Tuesday against the Mets, allowing only two runs on eight hits and three walks while piling up 113 pitches in five innings.

“Last time I got myself in too many jams,” Kawakami said through an interpreter. “Today I tried to execute my pitches better, stay lower in the strike zone, pitch my game. It was one of my best since I’ve been here.”

Kotchman woke with a stiff neck but played his usual exemplary defense and contributed three hits, including two doubles. He had a winning two-run, two-out groundball single to center field in the seventh inning for a 3-2 lead.

“Always nice to find some holes,” said Kotchman, who added a two-out double off the fence in the ninth to score pinch-hitter Norton, who rumbled around from first base. Norton fell awkwardly over home plate and landed on his arm after he tried to run through the catcher, who was blocking the plate until moving slightly at the the last second.

Kotchman has eight RBIs in four games, after totaling four RBI in his first 27.

“Casey’s started to drive ‘em in, which is great,” said Cox, who likes what he has seen from the lineup since catcher Brian McCann returned from the disabled list Friday, three days after left fielder Garret Anderson came off the DL.

“We have to to have something like that [4-1 surge],” said Cox, whose Braves (15-16) are still just fourth in the NL East, 2-1/2 games behind New York. “We’ve got our lineup together now and we’ve got a chance to score some runs.”

Jones could be out Monday after hypterextending his already sore right elbow but the third baseman didn’t expect to miss more than one game. Even Jones seemed upbeat about the Braves’ outlook after Sunday’s win, before a sellout crowd of 45,343 that pushed the weekend total to a stadium-record 135,994.