James shuts down Marlins; Braves win 4th straight

Braves 12, Marlins 3

MIAMI (AP) -- Chuck James likes a little dirt on his uniform, especially if he gets dirty sliding into home plate.

James held the Marlins to a run and four hits and had two hits of his own as the Atlanta Braves beat the Florida Marlins 12-3 on Friday night.

James (7-7) went 6 2/3 innings and struck out five to win for the second time in three starts.

It was the fourth consecutive win for the Braves, after a five-game losing streak. Kelly Johnson had three singles and reached base in all five plate appearances. Jeff Francoeur had four hits and an RBI.

"The run support helped me out and it took a lot of stress off," said James, who slid into home plate to score a run in the fifth inning. "It's always good to get a little dirty when I'm playing. I don't get to do that too often unless I throw the dirt on myself."

Marlins starter Josh Johnson (0-3) pitched four innings, allowing two runs and five hits. He walked five and struck out six.

The loss was Johnson's fourth straight, dating back to 2006. Johnson came off the disabled list on June 18. He missed the first 10 weeks of the season because of a nerve injury in his right elbow.

"My stuff is starting to come back a little bit," Johnson said. "I'm just a little inconsistent. After the first inning, I threw a lot of pitches, which is what I didn't want to do."

Atlanta scored four runs in the fifth inning off reliever Wes Obermueller. The Braves sent 10 batters to the plate and also took advantage of some sloppy Marlins defense. With two runners on base, Scott Thorman hit a grounder that got past first baseman Mike Jacobs for an RBI double. Dan Uggla bobbled the relay throw from right, allowing Kelly Johnson to score. James hit a grounder that skipped past Jacobs and drove in another run. Chipper Jones also singled a run to make the score 6-0. Obermueller gave up six runs and seven hits in 1 1/3 innings.

"He [James] did everything he could to win tonight," Braves manager Bobby Cox said. "He threw great. Everything is falling in for us. We played a great game and did a lot of things good."

Atlanta added two runs in the sixth and Chipper Jones hit a bases-loaded triple in a four-run eighth.

"We were just dinking and doinking them to death," Chipper Jones said. "A lot of good solid hitting and making their pitchers work."

Jacobs hit his fifth home run of the year for Florida, a solo homer off James in the sixth.

The Braves took a 2-0 lead in the second inning. Chipper Jones led off with a walk, then Andruw Jones singled. One out later, a sacrifice fly by Francouer scored Chipper Jones from third. Andruw Jones scored on a single by Johnson.

The Marlins scored twice in the ninth on a Brett Carroll RBI single and an run-scoring double by Hanley Ramirez.

After the game, Florida optioned left-hander Taylor Tankersley to Triple-A Albuquerque and recalled right-hander Lee Gardner. Tankersley pitched one inning in Friday's game and gave up four runs on two hits and two walks.

Game notes
Chipper Jones has hit safely in 12 of 14 games after being activated from the DL on June 13. ... The Marlins are 16-24 at home this season. ... Marlins utility infielder Jason Wood came in to pitch a perfect ninth inning. It was his first career pitching appearance.