Even with his team on the wrong end of a 3-0 score in the fifth inning, Tom Glavine still had confidence he could become baseball's first 10-game winner Wednesday night.
Glavine hurled a five-hitter for his fifth complete game of the season, leading the Atlanta Braves to a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers.Glavine, 10-3, struck out two and walked three as the Braves posted their seventh straight win. Atlanta scored all its runs in the fifth inning after Los Angeles had taken a 3-0 lead.
"I said to myself, 'Just don't let it get out of hand,"' Glavine said. "I knew the way we were playing, we were more than capable of coming back."
The Braves rewarded Glavine's confidence in the fifth.
Brian Hunter led off with his fifth homer of the year, sending an offering from Bob Ojeda, 3-4, into the left-field seats. One out later, Glavine reached base when his grounder went through the legs of second baseman Juan Samuel for an error.
Otis Nixon walked and Jeff Blauser followed with a single to score Glavine. Terry Pendleton singled to score Nixon and knock out Ojeda. Tom Candiotti relieved and Ron Gant singled home Blauser to give the Braves a 4-3 edge.
Ojeda allowed six hits over 4 1-3 innings, walking one and striking out two as the Dodgers lost their seventh straight game.
In equaling its longest losing streak since 1987, Los Angeles has fallen 11 1/2 games behind first-place Cincinnati in the National League West. In fact, the Dodgers have the same number of wins in the last 12 days as Glavine - two.
"Right now, as a team, we stink," Ojeda said. "We should be embarrassed."
The Dodgers took a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Butler led off with a walk, went to third on a double by Mike Sharperson and scored on a groundout by Samuel. Eric Karros then lofted a sacrifice fly to score Sharperson.
Los Angeles pushed its advantage to 3-0 in the second inning. Mitch Webster led off with a walk, went to third on a single by Carlos Hernandez and scored on a single by Jose Offerman.
Atlanta right fielder Dave Justice left the game after the third inning, suffering from a sore right knee. Justice will undergo magnetic resonance imaging tests on Thursday.
Reds 6, Giants 4
At Cincinnati, pitcher Chris Hammond hit his first major-league home run to help the Reds to their sixth straight victory. Hammond, 5-2, homered during a four-run fourth inning and limited the Giants to three runs and five hits over 6 2-3 innings. Rob Dibble earned his 11th save, recording the final four outs. The loss went to John Burkett, 5-3.
Padres 5, Astros 0
At Houston, Andy Benes scattered four hits and Kevin Ward drove home a run and scored twice for the Padres.
Pirates 8, Phillies 2
At Pittsburgh, Gary Varsho, Jeff King and Mike LaValliere homered to lead the Pirates. Randy Tomlin, 9-3, allowed two runs and 11 hits over 7 1-3 innings for his fifth straight win.
Expos 5, Mets 2
At New York, Moises Alou ripped a two-run homer and Spike Owen added a solo shot to power the Expos. Dennis Martinez, 7-5, scattered seven hits over 7 1-3 innings for the win.
American League
Red Sox 4, Yankees 3
Tom Brunansky doesn't get a chance to play everyday, so he has to make the most of his opportunities.
"It's tough to be in and out of the lineup you really can't get in any kind of a groove," Brunansky said. "I just try to hit the ball hard when I'm up there."
He certainly did that in all four of his at-bats Wednesday night, banging out four hits, including three straight doubles to lead the Boston Red Sox to a 4-3 victory over the New York Yankees.
Brunansky's double in the sixth inning brought in Phil Plantier with the game-winning run.
Ellis Burks homered and Frank Viola equaled his season high with seven strikeouts in eight innings as the Red Sox won their third straight over the Yankees.
Indians 3, Orioles 2
At Cleveland, Carlos Baerga doubled home the tying run and scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch during the Indians' three-run sixth. Cleveland won despite being five-hit. Charles Nagy, 9-3, won his fifth straight game and has recorded each of Cleveland's six complete games.
Brewers 10, Athletics 2
At Oakland, Calif., Greg Vaughn and Dave Nilsson hit back-to-back homers during Milwaukee's six-run first off Mike Moore, 7-5. The Brewers routed the A's 10-0 on Tuesday.
Twins 4, Royals 2
At Minneapolis, Kirby Puckett singled home the go-ahead run in the eighth and made a running, one-handed grab to preserve the lead in the ninth. Rick Aguilera, 1-4, picked up the win despite pitching into some trouble in the ninth.
Blue Jays 6, Tigers 2
At Toronto, Jack Morris won his fourth consecutive start and slumping Kelly Gruber collected three hits and a pair of RBI as the Blue Jays became baseball's first team to win 40 games. Morris, 8-3, held his former teammates to a pair of runs on seven hits in 6 1-3 innings.
Mariners 2, White Sox 1
At Seattle, Edgar Martinez hit a two-run homer off Charlie Hough in the eighth inning. Hough, 2-4, took a two-hit shutout into the eighth before Omar Vizquel doubled. Two outs later, Martinez hit a 2-1 knuckleball just over the left-field wall for his ninth homer.
Angels 3, Rangers 0
At Anaheim, Calif., Mark Langston fired a two-hit shutout to outduel Nolan Ryan. Langston, 7-4, posted his his second straight complete-game shutout and the 16th shutout of his career.