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 Hotlanta Jordan, Klesko, Maddux homer as Braves smoke Phils
Posted: Wednesday April 07, 1999 12:01 AM
ATLANTA (AP) -- Greg Maddux just grinned. It didn't take long for him to decide that his first home run since 1992 was a bigger thrill than his first win of the season. "Going deep. It's a no-brainer," he said after leading the Atlanta Braves over the Philadelphia Phillies 11-3 Wednesday night. Maddux also had a two-run single during an eight-run fourth inning, becoming the first pitcher to get two hits in an inning since Todd Stottlemyre did it for St. Louis against Pittsburgh on June 30, 1996. The home run off Chad Ogea (0-1) was just the third of Maddux's career, his first since connecting off Philadelphia's Kyle Abbott for the Chicago Cubs in April 20, 1992. "It was just flat-out luck," Maddux said. "The two-run single. That was lucky, too. It just found a hole." Maddux, a .178 hitter in the major leagues, set a career high with three RBIs -- one short of his total in 75 at-bats last season. The most RBIs he ever had in one year was eight in 1992. "It throws a little salt on the wound," Ogea said. "That tells you're having a bad night." Maddux (1-0) allowed one run and eight hits in six innings, struck out five and walked none. Derrin Ebert made his major league debut and pitched three innings for a save. The 22-year-old lefty allowed two runs. Ryan Klesko and Brian Jordan also homered, and Chipper Jones had three hits in the Braves' 16-hit attack. Maddux started the big fourth with his leadoff homer. "It got us pumped up," Jordan said. "No one expected it, and he really hit it a long way." Jordan, who also homered in Monday's season-opening 7-4 loss to the Phillies, had a three-run homer in Atlanta's big inning. The Braves got eight hits off Ogea and reliever Mike Grace. Jordan, who played for St. Louis before signing a $40 million, five-year deal with the Braves during the offseason, went 2-for-3 with a pair of walks and is 5-for-7 (.714) in two games. The eight runs were the most scored by Atlanta in one inning since the Braves scored nine times in the first inning against the New York Mets on Sept. 17, 1997. "It's not a lot of fun when in the fourth inning you're trying to figure out how you're going to get to the ninth inning, not how you're going to win," Philadelphia manager Terry Francona said. Klesko, who went 2-for-2 with a walk, hit a two-run homer off Ogea in a three-run second. Ogea, traded by Cleveland for right-hander Jerry Spradlin in November, was tagged for seven runs, seven hits and three homers in 3 1/3 innings in his NL debut. The right-hander, who won two games in the 1997 World Series, also walked five and struck out two. The Phillies scored off Maddux in the second on consecutive singles by Bobby Abreu, Mike Lieberthal and Desi Relaford. Maddux faced the Phillies twice last season, giving up only one earned run in 16 innings, but the best he could do was a loss and a no-decision as the Braves lost both his starts to Curt Schilling, who beat Atlanta on Monday. Notes: Atlanta's Andruw Jones ended an 0-for-37 hitless streak against the Phillies, including all of 1998, with a second-inning double, then added a fourth-inning single. He had a hit against the Phillies in his final at-bat in 1997 and went 0-for-4 in Monday's season opener. He also broke 23 at-bat hitless streak that included his final 19 of spring training. ... Jordan, for the second night in a row, did the "Dirty Bird" dance made popular by the Atlanta Falcons after hitting his homer. He played safety for the Falcons from 1989-91. ... Maddux hit his first major league homer on June 16, 1991, against San Diego's Jose Melendez. ... Braves second baseman Bret Boone turned 30 Tuesday. ... Maddux made his 400th career start. ... Ogea, who played five years with the Indians, had batted in two interleague games before Tuesday night, going 0-for-2 with a pair of sacrifices. He was 0-for-2 against Maddux.
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