PHILADELPHIA — The red-hot Atlanta Braves found a different way to continue their winning streak: good, old-fashioned hustle.
Dan Uggla had a tiebreaking RBI grounder in the 12th, the Atlanta bullpen pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings and the Braves beat the slumping Philadelphia Phillies 5-4 on Saturday night for their ninth straight win.
Luis Avilan (4-0), one of seven Atlanta pitchers, threw a scoreless 11th inning to earn the win and Craig Kimbrel got the last three outs for his 33rd save in 36 chances as the Braves won for the 11th time in 13 games.
Phillies left-hander Jake Diekman (0-2) pitched a perfect 11th but ran into trouble in the 12th. Justin Upton walked leading off and went to second on Freddie Freeman’s groundout. After an intentional walk to Evan Gattis, Diekman walked Paul Janish, a career .215 hitter, on four pitches to load the bases.
Justin De Fratus replaced Diekman and Uggla hit a bounding ball to short that looked like it could be a double play, but Uggla was safe at first when Chase Utley’s relay pulled an extended Kevin Frandsen off the bag. Utley withstood a strong takeout slide from Janish, who made contact with the Philadelphia second baseman.
“Unnoticed by a lot of people is the way Janish went into second against Utley,” Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “If you go in tiptoeing there, Utley gets a clean look.”
Said Janish, “The ball was hit slow enough and I was able to disrupt the play. Fortunately, it helped us win the game.”
Gonzalez also credited Uggla for his effort on the play.
“Uggla really busted it down the line,” he said. “The winning run came on a double-play ball, but our two runners made a difference.”
John Mayberry Jr. homered for Philadelphia, which has lost four in a row and 12 of 13.
“Obviously, this is very frustrating,” Mayberry said. “It can flip and come back around just as easily. We’re going to remain confident until the end.”
The Phillies did threaten in the 12th off Kimbrel, as Jimmy Rollins reached second with two outs on a fielder’s choice and wild pitch. But Kimbrel struck out pinch-hitter Laynce Nix to record his 23rd straight save.
“It seems like we have a hard time getting going,” Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. “We’re having a hard time playing good enough or doing enough to win. We’re playing the game out and staying there with it. We’re just getting beat right now.”
Justin Upton homered for the Braves.
Atlanta took a 4-3 lead with a three-run fifth highlighted by Freeman’s two-run single. But Rollins tied it with a two-out double in the seventh off reliever Luis Ayala that scored Mayberry. That hit closed the book on Brandon Beachy, who gave up three earned runs on five hits in 6 1/3 innings in his second start this season following Tommy John surgery.
Beachy was 5-5 with a 2.00 ERA in 13 starts last season before having surgery June 21, 2012. He struggled in his return to the big leagues, allowing seven runs on eight hits in 3 2/3 innings Monday against Colorado. Beachy, who struck out four and walked two, lowered his ERA to 9.00.
“It was a step in the right direction for me, that’s for sure,” Beachy said. “I settled in after the first inning and made some quality pitches.”