PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Brett Myers pitched his second complete game this season and Chase Utley and David Bell drove in two runs apiece, leading the Philadelphia Phillies over the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-1 on Saturday night.
The Phillies snapped a two-game skid and moved within 31/2 games of NL East-leading Atlanta. Philadelphia entered the day a half-game behind Houston in the wild-card race.
Myers (11-6) allowed six hits, including three infield singles, in his best outing since beating Colorado 5-3 on July 29. The right-hander’s ERA had risen from 3.21 to 3.62 in his previous three starts. He pitched eight innings in a complete-game loss at Chicago on May 8.
Myers’ fifth career complete game gave Philadelphia’s overused bullpen a much-needed rest. Phillies starters have gone the distance only four times this season.
The Phillies got all the runs Myers would need in the fourth against Dave Williams. Bobby Abreu and Pat Burrell walked to start the inning. Utley then lined a 1-2 pitch to the wall in right-center for a two-run triple. Ramon Martinez hit a sacrifice fly one out later to make it 3-1.
Bell added a two-run double that chased Williams in the sixth. Abreu singled leading off the inning and Utley walked with one out before Bell hit a liner into the right-field corner.
Williams (10-9) allowed five runs and four hits in 5 1-3 innings. He tied a season high with five walks.
The Pirates took a 1-0 lead in the fourth on Jose Castillo’s sacrifice fly. Jason Bay led off with a double and went to third on Brad Eldred’s one-out single.
Notes: Bay left with a bruised rib cage in the fourth. He was hit by pitches twice Thursday against the Mets. … Despite being platooned the first two months, Utley has 74 RBIs, one fewer than Abreu. Burrell leads the team with 88 RBIs. … Bell, who has struggled this season, is hitting .396 (40-for-101) against left-handers, second-best in the majors. … A crowd of 43,192 turned out at Citizens Bank Park. It was the 10th sellout this season. … Pirates C Humberto Cota committed a rare error in the seventh when he picked up the ball with his mask. The runner on second base was allowed to move to third.
AP-ES-08-20-05 2147EDT
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