WASHINGTON - Giving up a homer to Andruw Jones is one thing. Giving up a three-run drive on a 2-and-0 pitch to Atlanta's No. 8 hitter, rookie Brian McCann, is quite another, even if he knew what to look for.
Washington's Livan Hernandez allowed both those big hits, plenty to propel the Braves to a 4-0 victory over the Nationals on Saturday behind eight shutout innings from former Devil Ray Jorge Sosa and one homer-robbing catch by Jeff Francoeur.
The rookie outfielder leaped and reached over the wall in right to bring back Cristian Guzman's shot with a runner on in the fifth.
"It kind takes a little air out of you," Nationals manager Frank Robinson said. "That certainly would have been a big moment there for us."
Instead, it was Jones and McCann who homered in the fourth off Hernandez, who has lost 11 straight regular-season decisions against Atlanta.
"We just take advantage when he makes mistakes," Jones said.
Jones matched Eddie Mathews (1953) and Hank Aaron (1971) for most in a season by a Braves player.
"You know," Hernandez said, "Andruw's hot."
CARDINALS 4, METS 2: Jeff Suppan won his 14th game and hit his first career home run in the Cardinals' 4-2 win over the fading Mets on Saturday night.
Mike Piazza hoped to revive the Mets by returning to the lineup for the first time since he broke a bone in his left hand on Aug. 16. He homered in his first at-bat, putting New York ahead 1-0 in the second inning.
But in the eighth inning, the 12-time All-Star was beaned by reliever Julian Tavarez. Piazza fell to the ground, was laid out flat for several seconds, then sat up before walking off the field. Mets spokesman Jay Horwitz said Piazza sustained a slight concussion.
Suppan allowed one run, six hits and four walks in 52/3 innings as St. Louis improved to a season-high 39 games over .500. He homered leading off the third.
ASTROS 7, BREWERS 5: Houston's Andy Pettitte won his fifth straight and became a 15-game winner for the seventh time.
Pettitte allowed three runs in 62/3 innings. He also scored a run in the second and drove in a run with a suicide squeeze in the third. The win kept visiting Houston atop the wild-card.
DODGERS 3, PADRES 1: Derek Lowe took a shutout into the eighth, Willy Aybar had two hits in his first major-league start for host Los Angeles.
Lowe allowed seven hits and one run in 72/3 innings. He was working on a four-hitter before Dave Roberts, Mark Loretta and Robert Fick singled with two outs in the eighth.
MARLINS 7, PHILLIES 6: Pinch-hitter Paul Lo Duca's two-run single in the seventh inning pushed visiting Florida to win.
Carlos Delgado, Jeff Conine and Damion Easley each had three hits for Florida, which remained a half-game behind Houston in the wild-card race.
The Marlins rallied against Ryan Madson in the seventh with Easley's run-scoring single to center Conine's two-RBI single to left.
CUBS 5, GIANTS 2: Henry Blanco hit a two-run homer in the sixth to bail out starter Mark Prior for visiting Chicago.
Jeromy Burnitz had a two-run single and Derrek Lee hit two doubles and drove in a run as the Cubs bounced back a day after managing two hits against 20-year-old Matt Cain.
D'BACKS 8, ROCKIES 5: Troy Glaus hit his 32nd homer and drove in two runs and Shawn Green had three hits and a home run for visiting Arizona.
Kelly Stinnett and Chad Tracy also connected for the Diamondbacks. Conor Jackson added a two-run single.
The Diamondbacks took a 5-2 lead with a three-run third. Craig Counsell tripled and scored on an infield single by Glaus, and Jackson drove in two runs with a bases-loaded single.
REDS 6, PIRATES 2: Rich Aurilia's bases-loaded double in the fourth inning sparked a five-run rally, and Ramon Ortiz pitched his first complete game since 2003 to lead host Cincinnati.
