They used to call old Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium "The Launching Pad." On Friday, the Braves' current home, Turner Field, also had that old feel to it, as baseballs were frequently sent screaming through the air.
The Braves benefited the most from the home run binge in a 10-8 defeat of the visiting Brewers. Milwaukee out-homered Atlanta, 3-2, but the hosts used five total extra-base hits to turn back a late comeback attempt from Ron Roenicke's squad. The teams combined for 27 total hits.
Brian McCann did the most damage for Atlanta (3-4), matching a career-high hit total with four to go along with four RBI.
"McCann can hit," Roenicke said. "He worries me. He can really hit."
Milwaukee (4-4) started the night's flurry of hard-hit balls, when Alex Gonzalez and George Kottaras produced back-to-back homers in the second. The visitors had seized a 3-1 advantage at that point, but the lead was short-lived.
Atlanta did damage in the fifth inning, when McCann blasted a three-run home run and teammate Matt Diaz soon added a two-run shot to left-center. The hosts eventually led, 8-3, before the Brewers mounted a late comeback that was aided by Corey Hart's National League-leading fourth home run of the season.
This was not a banner night for Milwaukee starter Randy Wolf. The veteran yielded nine hits and eight earned runs over 4 1/3 innings pitched. Wolf had three walks and one strikeout, and needed 98 pitches to help his team record 13 outs.
"Randy left some balls up that they didn't miss," Roenicke explained. "Randy all night ... didn't have a good feel. He was fighting it the whole game."
It was an uncharacteristic night in multiple respects for Milwaukee, which had entered the game an MLB-best 23-13 on games played on Friday the 13th.
This may not have been a nightmarish performance exactly, but, for the Brewers, it was a largely forgettable one. Milwaukee will look to rebound against Atlanta at 6:10 p.m. Saturday.
"We played a great game," Roenicke insisted. The Braves "just really swung the bats well."
