Atlanta offense busts out in 9-7 win over Oswalt, Houston

Braves hammer Oswalt in 9-7 win over Astros

HOUSTON — Garret Anderson drove in three runs, Nate McLouth homered and the Atlanta Braves broke out of their offensive slump with a 9-7 win over Roy Oswalt and the Houston Astros on Thursday night.

Brian McCann had four hits and two RBIs for the Braves, who chased the Astros’ ace after two innings and finished with 16 hits, two shy of their season high.

Lance Berkman hit a three-run homer for the Astros, who lost for the third time in Oswalt’s last 13 starts.

Houston put two runners on with one out in the ninth against Mike Gonzalez, but Miguel Tejada grounded into his third double play of the game. Gonzalez earned his 10th save.

The Braves had averaged 1.67 runs and batted .153 in their previous six games, but led 3-0 after 12 pitches from Oswalt (8-6).

McLouth hit the second pitch of the game into the Astros’ bullpen, his second homer of the series. Yunel Escobar then doubled to left-center and scored on Chipper Jones’ single to right.

McCann ended an 0-for-20 slump with a single and Jones scored on Anderson’s sacrifice fly to left.

Atlanta added three more in the second. McCann doubled in McLouth to give the Braves a 4-1 lead. Anderson and Adam LaRoche added RBI singles.

Derek Lowe (14-9) allowed five runs and nine hits in 5 2-3 innings for Braves, but managed to win for the second time in five starts.

Berkman hit his 19th homer off the facade in left center in the third, cutting Atlanta’s lead to 6-4. Umpires used instant replay to confirm the ball cleared the yellow line by about a foot.

The first baseman hadn’t homered in 32 games, one shy of the longest drought of his career.

NOTES: Atlanta reached 10 hits for the first time since an 8-7 loss to Florida on Sept. 2. … McLouth has three leadoff homers this season and six in his career. … Houston 3B Geoff Blum was out of the lineup after bruising his left shin and spraining his left ankle sliding into second base on Wednesday. “We’ll give him a few days,” manager Cecil Cooper said. Chris Johnson, whose minor league contract was purchased on Monday, made his first major league start in Blum’s place.