<p>The Atlanta Braves have found that young legs are good road legs.</p><p>With such veterans as Julio Franco, who turns 47 next month, and John Smoltz, 38, the Atlanta Braves could be vulnerable to the rigors of cross-country travel on their 10-game road trip to New York, San Francisco and Arizona.</p><p>Instead, the Braves have continued to run closer to first place in the NL East, thanks to strong play from some newcomers.</p><p>The latest example came Wednesday night, when rookie Jeff Francoeur had three hits, including a homer, to give the Braves a 4-1 win over the Giants and two wins in the three-game series. The Braves, off Thursday, are 4-3 on the road trip as they begin a series in Arizona's heat wave Friday night.</p><p>Pending Washington's home game against Houston Thursday night, the Braves are only one-half game behind the Nationals in the NL East.</p><p>"The young guys have to be good for us to keep going on a trip like this," said Braves manager Bobby Cox. "We've been on the road for a while, and we've got three games left in Arizona. It's good to have those fresh legs to rely on."</p><p>After Franco hit a double in the second inning Wednesday, the 21-year-old Francoeur followed with his third major-league homer. He added two singles for his first three-hit game.</p><p>Francoeur is batting .409 with three homers and seven RBIs since being called up from Double-A Mississippi.</p><p>"He's taken to it pretty darn good," Cox said. "He's got a pretty good idea when he goes up (to the plate). He's a very strong kid. He's going to be some kind of player."</p><p>Even with Brian Jordan on the disabled list, Cox already has a rookie-induced logjam in the outfield. Rookies Kelly Johnson, Ryan Langerhans and Francoeur have been flanking center fielder Andruw Jones.</p><p>Cox has continued to play Johnson on a regular basis, while Francoeur has cut into Langerhans' playing time.</p><p>Francoeur, a former baseball and football standout at Parkview High School near Atlanta, says he is still savoring his promotion to the big leagues.</p><p>"I'm just enjoying however much time I get," Francoeur said. "I'm trying to learn as much as I can. It's funny how it works. Two weeks ago, I was in Montgomery in a Japanese restaurant during a rainout, and I got the call. To be here two weeks later, it's just great."</p><p>Francoeur's big game helped Smoltz (11-5) earn his seventh straight win. The winning streak, which has included three complete-game victories, has come with rookie catcher Brian McCann.</p><p>"He hasn't lost a game he's started," Smoltz said of McCann. "I can't say enough about the way he handles himself in a game, the way he goes about his job."</p><p>Smoltz also was helped by the defense of Francoeur in right field.</p><p>"He's been great," said Smoltz of Francoeur. "Offensively, we knew he had some pop in his bat. Defensively, he's been a Hoover machine out there, picking up everything. You can tell he's going to be some kind of player real soon.</p><p>"It's been a huge performance by all 25 guys. We've got a lot of the next generation making contributions now, and it just feels that much better to be doing what we're doing."</p><p>___</p><p>AP Sports Writer Greg Beacham in San Francisco contributed to this report.</p>
