Braves 9, Phillies 6
Dan Uggla’s ninth-inning grand slam – his second homer of the night – capped a wild final two innings as visiting Atlanta began a seven-game road trip with its fourth consecutive victory.
Evan Gattis also homered twice while Gattis, Uggla and Andrelton Simmons hit consecutive blasts in the eighth to give the Braves a 5-1 advantage. Luis Avilan (3-1) surrendered five runs on four hits in the bottom of the inning but notched the victory thanks to the ninth-inning comeback, and David Carpenter pitched the ninth for his first save.
Domonic Brown’s three-run homer capped the eighth-inning uprising for Philadelphia and Ryan Howard added a solo shot. Jake Diekman (1-1), called on to close in the ninth, gave up four runs on two hits and two walks.
Down 5-1 entering the bottom of the eighth, the Phillies halved the deficit on Marlon Byrd’s two-run single before Brown launched his first homer of the season to put Philadelphia ahead 6-5. The Braves loaded the bases in the ninth on two walks and a fielder’s choice, and after Diekman struck out Gattis for the first out of the inning, Uggla smashed an 0-1 offering deep into the left-field seats for his third career grand slam.
Howard’s second-inning homer off Ervin Santana opened the scoring, but Gattis’ first homer of the game in the sixth put the Braves ahead 2-1. Atlanta appeared to be in complete control in the eighth after Gattis, Uggla and Simmons launched pitches by B.J. Rosenberg over the left-field fence.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Santana allowed one run on four hits with two walks in six stellar innings, tying a career high with 11 strikeouts. … Atlanta LF Justin Upton, named National League Player of the Week after hitting .591 with four homers and eight RBIs in six games, went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. … Phillies 2B Chase Utley, who struck out twice in his first 40 at-bats before Monday, whiffed in his first two plate appearances but finished with two hits to extend his hitting streak to 11 games.