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Jacobs, Gonzalez power Marlins past Braves

Apr 17, 2008 - 4:48 AM By Chris Stock PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

MIAMI (Ticker) - The Florida Marlins may have the major's lowest payroll, but through 14 games they have one of the most powerful lineups.

Mike Jacobs hit his sixth home run and Luis Gonzalez added a two-run pinch-hit homer, leading the Florida Marlins to a 6-5 win over the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday.

Despite a league-low $22.65 million payroll that is the nearly half of the 29th-place Tampa Bay Rays, Florida trails only the Arizona Diamondbacks with 23 homers this season.

"Our nucleus of the lineup is pretty good," Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "Miguel (Cabrera) is not here, but our nucleus is pretty good; we just have to stay healthy. We're not asking anything of them other than what they did last year. We are going to put some runs on the board."

With the Marlins leading, 3-1, in the bottom of the third, Jacobs roped a line drive off Braves starter Tim Hudson (2-1) just over the fence in right to open a three-run lead.

The home run was Jacobs' sixth of the season, tying him with the Chicago Cubs' Derrek Lee for the early lead in the National League.

"Hopefully it continues, I feel pretty good up there," Jacobs said.

Meanwhile, Hudson recorded his shortest outing since July 5, 2007, against the Los Angeles Dodgers as he threw just three innings, allowing four runs and six hits.

"It could be some residual effects from the flu that's just catching up to me, but I'm not one to make excuses," Hudson said. "It was just one of those things where, consistently, my heater was 84, 85, 86 (miles per hour) and that's not going to get it done."

Yunel Escobar belted a two-run home run in the fifth that cut the lead to 4-3, but Florida answered with another long ball in the seventh.

Gonzalez, pinch-hitting for reliever Taylor Tankersley, responded with a two-run homer following a leadoff walk to Alfredo Amezaga to push the advantage to 6-3. It was just his second career pinch-hit home run of his 378 career home runs, with his only other such homer coming on June 13, 1992.

"It's good now, if we would have lost, it wouldn't have meant much," Gonzalez said. "It's a good win for us; it keeps us rolling."

The Braves cut into the lead as Mark Teixeira led off the eighth with a walk and Jeff Francoeur followed with a double to deep center field.

Brian McCann plated Teixeira with a run-scoring groundout and Matt Diaz scored Francoeur with an RBI single, but reliever Renyel Pinto got Mark Kotsay to hit into an inning-ending double play.

Mark Hendrickson (3-1) recorded his third straight win, allowing three runs - two earned - and six hits with three walks and a strikeout over 5 1/3 innings. Four relievers bridged the gap to closer Kevin Gregg, who retired the side in order in the ninth for his third save in as many chances.