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  Sunday, Sep. 17 4:35pm ET
Braves take 3-game lead over Mets
 
  RECAP | BOX SCORE | GAME LOG

PHOENIX (AP) -- Andruw Jones had no time to think about the NL East race and the New York Mets.

Andruw Jones
Andruw Jones rounds third after hitting a solo home run off Curt Schilling in the third inning.
Not with Curt Schilling on the mound for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

"We've just got to concentrate on this game," Jones said after getting three hits in the Atlanta Braves' 7-1 victory Sunday. "We just have to score some runs off Schilling. We know he's a tough pitcher."

Kevin Millwood outpitched Schilling as the Braves took a three-game lead in the NL East over the New York Mets.

New York, which lost 5-0 to Montreal, starts a three-game series at Turner Field on Monday night.

The Diamondbacks stayed five games behind the Mets in the wild-card race.

Jones singled and homered in three at-bats against Schilling, who had limited him to 6-for-32 success and one career RBI.

Jones also had a triple later, but lost his chance to hit for the cycle when he flied out to end the eighth inning.

"I thought about it, but when you think about it, that's when you ain't going to do it," said Jones, who hit his 32nd homer.

Millwood (10-11) pitched seven stingy innings to beat the Diamondbacks for the third time this season. He's 4-0 against them lifetime.

"That's kind of the formula Atlanta has been using for a number of years," Arizona manager Buck Showalter said. "Pitch that well, they stay close, and they put us away late."

Schilling (10-12) lost his fifth straight decision. He's 4-6 in 11 starts since he was traded from Philadelphia to Arizona.

"I don't know that I'm really into the personal battles here," Schilling said. "We've put ourselves against the wall, and every game now is a must-win. For whatever reason, we're not winning ballgames."

Leading 2-1, the Braves broke it open with a five-run eighth against the Arizona bullpen.

Millwood allowed four hits and one walk and struck out five. He gave up just one damaging hit -- a leadoff homer by Greg Colbrunn in the second.

Millwood allowed no more than one baserunner in any inning except in the fourth, when an error, a single by Colbrunn and a walk to Steve Finley loaded the bases with one out. But Matt Williams grounded into a double play, ending the threat.

Schilling was touched for nine hits and two runs in seven innings.

Wally Joyner hit two RBI singles for the Braves -- one in the first inning and the other off Byung-Hyun Kim in the eighth after Jones tripled.

Javy Lopez hit a two-run double into the left-field corner, increasing Atlanta's lead to 5-1 and chasing Kim. Mike Morgan gave up RBI singles to Reggie Sanders and Keith Lockhart.

Game notes
Arizona's Tony Womack stole second -- his 44th theft -- in the third, but then tried to steal third and was caught. ... Braves SS Rafael Furcal has an 11-game hitting streak. ... Millwood improved to 50-29 in his three-year career. ... Arizona RHP Todd Stottlemyre will rejoin the team in San Francisco to start Thursday against the Giants. He is on leave to be with his cancer-stricken father, New York Yankees pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre. ... Finley played for the first time since the Dodgers' Onan Masaoka hit him on the left wrist Tuesday.
 


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