Phillies climb over. 500; Braves' Cox nears ejections record

Phillies 6, Braves 4

ATLANTA (AP) -- The Philadelphia Phillies needed 49 games to finally move above .500 -- not exactly the script for a team picked by some to win the NL East.

"Now we get to come back and see if we can stay there," said manager Charlie Manuel.

Chase Utley drove in three runs, Shane Victorino had three hits and Philadelphia beat the Atlanta Braves 6-4 on Saturday to give the Phillies their long-awaited first winning record of the season.

Antonio Alfonseca recorded his first save in almost five years, providing a reminder that the Phillies' path to a winning record has been difficult.

Alfonseca was given the ninth-inning opportunity because the team's original closer, Tom Gordon, and second choice, Brett Myers, are on the disabled list.

Meanwhile, Ryan Howard, who came off the disabled list on Friday, is hitting only .200 and Pat Burrell is at .225. Each went 0-for-3 Saturday.

"I feel like we've had to really bust our butts to get where we're at," Manuel said. "That's part of the game. Injuries are part of the game. Slumps are part of the game."

The Phillies (25-24) have won the first two games of the three-game series and are three games behind the second-place Braves in the NL East.

"It means a lot, but we're still not where we want to be," Victorino said. "We want to be division leaders."

Atlanta lost for the ninth time in 13 games as Buddy Carlyle, called up from Triple-A Richmond for the start, gave up five runs in four innings.

"Losing games in your division is tough," Braves catcher Brian McCann said. "It's hard to swallow. We've got to come out tomorrow and win. You never want to get swept. We've got to win at least one of these."

Adam Eaton (5-3) gave up six hits and four runs in six innings for the Phillies. He walked three and had one strikeout in winning his second straight start.

Alfonseca pitched the ninth for his first save since Sept. 13, 2002 with the Chicago Cubs at Cincinnati.

"It's been a long time," Alfonseca said. "I'll remember this day."

Utley hit a two-run double in the Phillies' four-run third inning. He leads NL second basemen with 20 doubles and 41 RBIs.

Victorino had a homer and scored three runs.

Braves manager Bobby Cox was ejected for the second straight game and the fifth time this season, leaving him one behind John McGraw's record of 131.

After Kelly Johnson led off the third inning with a double, Willie Harris hit a grounder over first base that landed near the foul line. First base umpire Ron Kulpa immediately called the ball foul. TV replays supported the ruling, but Cox was ejected when he came on the field to argue the call.

Kulpa also tossed John Smoltz as Smoltz yelled at the umpire from the dugout.

Cox stuck by his argument after the game.

"Oh, yeah, it was fair," Cox said. "We're losing 4-1 at the time, I thought it was big."

Following the long delay, Harris walked and Edgar Renteria followed with a two-run double.

Harris also scored the Braves' first run when he tripled in the first inning and scored on Renteria's groundout.

Renteria also had a homer, going 2-for-4 with four RBIs.

Carlyle (0-1) made his first major league appearance since May 25, 2005, with the Los Angeles Dodgers and his first start since Oct. 2, 1999, for San Diego at Arizona.

He gave up six hits and five runs in four innings, including four runs in the third. Eaton drove in Michael Bourn with a single, and Utley hit a two-run double over Andruw Jones in center field.

Victorino scored on a passed ball by McCann.

Renteria's two-run double cut the Phillies' lead to 4-3.

Victorino led off the fifth with a triple to right, knocking Carlyle out of the game. Utley's single off Macay McBride pushed the lead to 5-3.

Victorino needed a double in the ninth to hit for the cycle, but he flied out to center.

"I just wanted to get a hit," he said. "It's about winning. I'd rather have a win that have a cycle."

Game notes
Renteria has hits in 27 of his past 31 games. ... Utley has 20 RBIs in May. ... RHP Joey Devine was optioned to Double-A Mississippi to clear a roster spot for Carlyle. ... Phillies pitchers already have 18 hits this year after ranking last in the NL with 29 last season. ... Cox was ejected in consecutive games for the first time since May 20-21, 2003 at Cincinnati.