ATLANTA (AP) - Talk about bouncing back.
Julio Teheran rebounded from the shortest start of his career with a six-hitter, leading the Atlanta Braves past the slumping Milwaukee Brewers 5-0 Tuesday night.
Justin Upton homered and had three RBIs, but Teheran (3-3) was the star of the night. He turned in his second shutout of the season, just six days after lasting only 3 1-3 innings in a 10-4 loss at San Francisco.
“He’s proving himself to be the ace of the team,” said Andrelton Simmons, who also homered for the Braves. “He had a bad outing. That’s the best way to bounce back - a shutout.”
It was another laugher in the matchup between first-place teams, the Braves jumping ahead with three runs in the third and cruising to victory after opening the series with a 9-3 rout.
The Brewers have lost four in a row overall, their longest skid of 2014.
Teheran pitched his first career shutout last month, beating Philadelphia 1-0 with a three-hitter. This time, he was on the verge of getting pulled when he gave up a pair of singles in the ninth inning, putting runners at first and third and one out. But he struck out pinch-hitter Rickie Weeks and Carlos Gomez, the latter with a 92 mph fastball on Teheran’s 128th pitch.
“I forgot about that last game,” the right-hander said, “and concentrated on this one.”
Upton had a two-run single in the third and his 12th homer in the fifth, a solo shot.
Yovani Gallardo (2-3) took a painful loss. He left the game in the fourth after twisting his left ankle jumping for a high chopper up the middle, extending his winless streak to more than six weeks.
Gallardo hasn’t been credited with a win since April 6 at Boston, his second start of the season. Since then, he is 0-3 with five no-decisions, despite allowing no more than four earned runs in any of those appearances.
At least the X-rays were negative. He is day-to-day with a sprained ankle.
“We’ll see about the next start,” manager Ron Roenicke said. “It’s questionable.”
Simmons put the Braves ahead in the third with his fourth homer, a drive into the left-field seats. He was in the middle of things again in the fourth, pulling off a heads-up play on the basepaths.
After B.J. Upton worked Gallardo for a walk, Simmons hit a high bouncer off second base, the ball rolling into short left field. Second baseman Scooter Gennett chased it down, then lazily threw it in toward third base. Simmons took off for second and appeared to get a hand in ahead of the tag with a tumbling slide.
The umpire initially called Simmons out, but the call was overturned after Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez challenged. The review took 2 minutes, 15 seconds.
Teheran followed with another hopper over the mound, the ball bouncing away when Gennett and shortstop Jean Segura got tangled up trying to make the play. Upton came in to score, Gennett was charged with an error, and Gallardo came up limping after leaping for the ball and coming down awkwardly on his left foot. He was done for the night.
Notes: A child sitting behind the Braves dugout was struck when Gomez fouled off a line drive in the seventh inning. Teheran crouched down in anguish when he saw what happened, and Gomez also looked toward the stands with concern. The Braves said the boy was “conscious and talkative” before he was taken to a hospital. No other details were immediately released. … The Braves scratched C Evan Gattis, who had been scheduled to hit cleanup, just before the first pitch because of “viral symptoms.” Ramiro Pena moved up from eighth to second in the revised batting order, with Justin Upton sliding down to hit cleanup. Gerald Laird took over at catcher, hitting eighth. … Brewers RHP Jim Henderson (shoulder) is scheduled to make a rehab appearance Friday for Double-A Huntsville (AL). The tentative plan is for Henderson to make three outing in the minors so he can go multiple innings as a long reliever for Milwaukee. … Atlanta’s Ervin Santana (4-1) will go against Milwaukee’s Kyle Lohse (5-1) on Wednesday.
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