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Anderson provides spark, Braves beat Mets

Sep 21, 2008 - 4:16 AM By Phil Foley PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

ATLANTA (Ticker) -- After a bump in the road, Josh Anderson and the Atlanta Braves got back to their winning ways against the New York Mets at home.

Anderson had three hits, stole two bases and plated a run and Jorge Campillo tossed six solid frames, helping the Braves to a 4-2 win over the Mets on Saturday before a packed house at Turner Field.

Pedro Martinez surrendered four runs in six innings but plated both runs for New York (86-68), which fell one-half game behind Philadelphia (87-68) in the National League East. The Phillies posted a 3-2 triumph over the Florida Marlins on Saturday.

"As a player, this is what you live for - a situation like this one (down the stretch)," New York's Carlos Beltran said. "We're fighting to go to the postseason, that's what it's all about. I prefer to win the division, but it doesn't matter how you make it in. The most important thing is to be there in October."

Turner Field has been the place of many epic battles between the Mets and over the years. But the results consistently have favored the home team as Atlanta has taken 65 of 97 regular-season meetings since the stadium opened in 1997.

The Mets were able to reverse the trend in the series opener Friday with a late-inning rally en route to notching their first win in seven tries here this season. But Atlanta restored order in its home ballpark against New York's former ace in this one.

"Atlanta has been able to play good games against us," Beltran said. "Especially at Turner Field. We really have to go out and score runs and play good baseball."

A three-time Cy Young Award winner, Martinez (5-6) has struggled down the stretch for the Mets, losing each of his last three starts while allowing 14 runs and 24 hits over his last 16 innings.

The 36-year-old entered this one hoping to help his team remain atop the NL East while trying to avoid a personal three-game slide for the first time since the end of the 2006 campaign. He was unable to come through, however, as the Braves sent eight batters to the plate during a three-run first inning.

"Maybe I'm not being as aggressive as I should," Martinez said. "Sometimes when I'm trying to be aggressive, I give up home runs. It makes you wonder, it makes you think. Without a doubt, I have to find out (what's wrong) as soon as possible."

Anderson began the onslaught with a single and stole second on the next pitch by Martinez before Martin Prado drew a walk. Kelly Johnson followed with a double into the right-center field gap, plating Anderson and extending his career-best hitting streak to 18 games.

Prado scored on Brian McCann's groundout to give Atlanta a 2-0 lead, and Casey Kotchman capped the uprising with an RBI single.

Martinez has not been the same dominant pitcher since rotator cuff surgery robbed him of most of the 2007 season. The hard-throwing righthander, who hit 97 miles per hour with his fastball prior to the operation, now is throwing in the high 80s and low 90s.

The injury, as well as the loss of his father to brain cancer earlier this season, has taken a toll on Martinez, who yielded four runs and nine hits in six innings.

"I've had a rough year," he admitted. "It's not only pitching-wise and numbers-wise, but it's also mental. I've been through a lot. It's really hard for me to be 100 percent."

Campillo (8-7) surrendered two runs and five hits while walking two and striking out a pair in recording his first win since August 8 at Arizona.

"It's been a long, long time," Campillo said. "Pedro is a future Hall of Famer. To beat Pedro and the Mets is good for me."

Martinez provided his team's only offense against the Mexican Campillo, plating Beltran and Brian Schneider with a double into the right-center field gap in the fifth that drew New York within 3-2. But Atlanta added an insurance run in the sixth on Anderson's single.

Anderson admitted facing Martinez can be intimidating.

"Everybody in baseball knows who he is," Anderson said. "He's a great pitcher. He knows how to get hitters out. I tried to block that out of my mind, who I was facing."

Will Ohman recorded the first out in the seventh before yielding to Jeff Bennett, who notched the next five outs. Mike Gonzalez set down the Mets in order in the ninth to record his 12th save.

Chipper Jones (.362), who leads St. Louis' Albert Pujols (.351) in the race for the NL batting title, missed the game with right shoulder tendinitis. Atlanta improved to 10-23 in games in which Jones has sat out this season.