PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Ender Inciarte went 5 for 5 with four RBIs to lead the Atlanta Braves to a 9-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies in the first game of a doubleheader Wednesday.
R.A Dickey (9-8) struck out nine over eight innings and the Braves won for the first time this season in nine games at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies lead the season series 12-3 and had a seven-game winning streak against Atlanta snapped.
Inciarte singled his first four times up and hit a two-out triple in the seventh. He walked in the ninth. He has had five hits in a game three times this season.
Mark Leiter Jr. gets the start against Atlanta’s Julio Teheran in the second game.
Atlanta third baseman Brandon Phillips singled for his 2,000th career hit and extended his hitting streak to 14 games.
The Braves took out the frustration of a season’s worth of defeats on Philadelphia over the first three innings, scoring eight runs. Freddie Freeman hit a two-run homer off Jerad Eickhoff (4-8) in the first.
Eickhoff left the game with a trainer in the third inning with an apparent injury. Eickhoff’s fastball only hit 90 mph twice and the Braves pounced on the slower fastballs.
Dickey was solid on the mound and helped himself at the plate.
With runners on first and second and Atlanta holding an 8-0 lead, Dickey squared for a sacrifice bunt.
“C’mon, you’re up by eight!” one fan yelled from the stands.
Dickey swung away and blooped a single over the drawn-in infield to load the bases. Inciarte’s fourth single of the game in the fifth gave the Braves a 9-0 lead. At that point, the Phillies had just one hit.
Eickhoff struggled from the start and he clearly had trouble finding velocity on his fastball. There was negligible difference between his fastball and his offspeed pitches and the Braves were the beneficiaries. Freeman’s 23rd homer of the season made it 3-0, and Eickhoff left after allowing six hits and six runs in two-plus innings.
Phillies rookie Rhys Hoskins was baffled by Dickey’s knuckleball and flailed at strike three in the fourth. Hoskins singled in the seventh to extend his hitting streak to seven games. His streak of an RBI in six straight games ended. His 25 RBIs in August are the most by a Phillies rookie in a month since Willie Montanez had 29 in June 1971.
Kurt Suzuki was the only Atlanta starter without a hit.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Braves: C Tyler Flowers was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a left wrist contusion. The Braves called up C David Freitas from Triple-A Gwinnett and designated RHP Enrique Burgos for assignment.
HOT STREAK
Inciarte has 169 hits overall. He’s trying to become the first Brave with 200 hits in a season since Marquis Grissom had 207 in 1996.
COLD STREAK
The Phillies have 82 losses and will finish with a losing record for the fifth straight season.
UP NEXT
Leiter (2-3, 3.86 ERA) takes on Teheran (8-11, 4.90). Leiter tossed one-hit ball over seven innings in an 8-0 win over Miami in his last outing and Teheran has allowed 29 home runs this season.
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