Albies goes deep in Braves victory
PHILADELPHIA — Ozzie Albies hit his 14th home run of the season and Brandon McCarthy tossed 5 2/3 sharp innings as the Atlanta Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies 3-1 Tuesday night.
McCarthy (5-2) allowed one run and four hits with five strikeouts. He is 4- 0 with a 2.08 ERA against Philadelphia this season and 1-2 with a 6.60 ERA against the rest of the league.
Vince Velasquez ( 4-5) gave up two runs — one earned — and fanned nine in 4 2/3 innings. He fell to 0-4 against the Braves.
The NL East’s top two teams have already met 11 times, with Atlanta winning seven games.
Braves left- hander A.J. Minter escaped a firstand-third, two-out jam in the eighth, retiring Jorge Alfaro on a fly to center field. Arodys Vizcaino finished with a perfect inning for his ninth save in 11 tries.
Albies put the Braves in front with a solo shot in the third. The leadoff hitter is second behind Bryce Harper for most homers in the National League.
Sloppy defense by the Phillies helped Atlanta get another run in the fifth. Albies walked to start the inning. He advanced to third on Freddie Freeman’s single after right fielder Nick Williams threw to an uncovered base because third baseman Maikel Franco was shifted. Freeman went to second on the play.
Nick Markakis followed with a bouncer to first baseman Carlos Santana. His throw to the plate sailed over Alfaro’s head for an error, allowing Albies to score.
Cesar Hernandez’s RBI single in the bottom half cut it to 2-1. But McCarthy struck out Rhys Hoskins swinging to strand runners on second and third.
The Braves missed an opportunity in the fourth when they loaded the bases with no outs on a walk and two singles. Velasquez struck out Dansby Swanson, Ryan Flaherty and McCarthy — each went down swinging.
Ronald Acuna Jr.’s RBI single in the ninth off Edubray Ramos drove in Albies to give the Braves an insurance run.
The Braves are 20-10 against NL East opponents. The Phillies are just 9-15.
On the injury front, Atlanta right- hander Anibal Sanchez ( right hamstring strain) will make another rehab start for Triple- A Gwinnett on Saturday. Sanchez was roughed up Monday night, allowing eight runs in 3 2/ 3 innings against Durham.