Friday March 29th, 2024 6:20AM

Braves beat Marlins 7-2 to lock up first home series win

By The Associated Press

ATLANTA (AP) — Braves interim manager Brian Snitker says Gordon Beckham is "bouncing around like he's a teenager."

That makes sense, because the return to his childhood hometown has helped Beckham add new life to his career.

Beckham hit a three-run homer, Nick Markakis drove in two runs and Atlanta beat the Miami Marlins 7-2 on Saturday to secure their first home series win of the season.

Beckham, 29, an Atlanta native and former University of Georgia standout, spent most of his first seven seasons with the Chicago White Sox before signing with the Braves as a free agent. He is hitting .317 while earning more starts at third base and second base than was expected at the start of the season.

"I feel good," Beckham said. "I enjoy putting on this uniform every day. It's a lot of fun for me, being from Atlanta."

The Braves improved to a still-dismal 4-20 at Turner Field by winning the first two games of the three-game series. Atlanta rallied from a 2-0 deficit for the second straight day.

Beckham said players hadn't emphasized the elusive home series win.

"Not really. I know that sounds bad, but we show up every day and come to the park and work hard. ... So we're not putting more pressure on ourselves than we already put on it."

The Braves are 5-0 against the Marlins and 9-34 against all other teams. Atlanta swept a three-game series at Miami on April 15-17.

Atlanta took the lead by scoring three runs in the sixth off Jose Urena (1-1). Beckham hit his homer off Edwin Jackson after Jackson walked two batters in the seventh.

Atlanta, which began the day tied with Minnesota for the worst record in the majors, is 5-6 under Snitker.

The Marlins committed three errors, including two by center fielder Marcell Ozuna.

"We didn't play good enough to win," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. "We didn't score enough to win. We didn't stop them. You don't deserve to win if you don't do enough to win."

Eric O'Flaherty (1-3) recorded two outs after rookie Aaron Blair, recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett before the game, allowed two runs in 5 2/3 innings.

Miami led 2-1 in the sixth when, with two runners on base, Markakis hit a single off Urena that bounced past Ozuna for an error. Markakis raced to third, and Freddie Freeman and Tyler Flowers scored. Jeff Francoeur doubled in Markakis for a 4-2 lead.

Miami left-hander Wei-Yin Chen allowed one run on two hits and one walk in five innings.

STILL STREAKING

Ozuna singled off Chris Withrow with two outs in the ninth to extend his hitting streak to 10 games. He is hitting .487 (19 for 39) during the streak and .341 for the season.

FENDER BENDER

SS Chase d'Arnaud was scratched from the Braves' original lineup after he was involved in a traffic accident on the way to Turner Field. D'Arnaud was not injured but was shaken by the accident, according to Snitker. Daniel Castro started at shortstop, and d'Arnaud was a defensive replacement at third base in the seventh.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Marlins: OF Christian Yelich (back spasms) missed his eighth straight start. He struck out as a pinch-hitter in the sixth, his second straight game being used as a pinch-hitter. ... OF Giancarlo Stanton (right side soreness) missed his fourth straight game.

Braves: SS Erick Aybar was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a bruised right foot. He was hurt when hit by a pitch from Miami's Adam Conley in Friday night's game. X-rays were negative. Aybar said his foot stiffened and became swollen overnight.

UP NEXT

Marlins: RHP Tom Koehler (2-5, 4.79), who has a 5.00 ERA in five May starts, will try for his first win of the month when he faces the Braves in Sunday's final game of the weekend series. He is 2-5 with a 3.82 ERA in 15 career appearances against Atlanta, including 11 starts.

Braves: RHP Julio Teheran, only 1-4 despite a 2.57 ERA, will try for his second win on Sunday. He is 1-1 with a 2.59 ERA in four career starts against Miami.

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