Neagle, Lopez Lead Braves To Win

May 27, 1998 / 1:25 AM EDT / CBS/AP

May has been another fine month for the Atlanta Braves.

Javy Lopez hit a grand slam, Denny Neagle won again at home and the Braves routed the Montreal Expos 9-3 on Tuesday night, breaking the Atlanta record for victories in May.

The Braves, who have won seven of eight, broke a 2-year-old Atlanta record by improving to 20-5 this month. They also matched the Atlanta mark for wins in any month.

"I'll take 20 wins every month," Chipper Jones said. "You'll have a pretty good season if you win 20 games every month."

The Braves, who went 17-9 in April, are on pace to win 118 games this season. But Jones said they have not reached their full potential, considering the injuries to John Smoltz, Mark Wohlers, Walt Weiss and Ryan Klesko.

Smoltz is on the disabled list for the second time, while Wohlers is still trying to bounce back from a pulled muscle in his left side. Weiss returned to the lineup Tuesday after missing four games with an injured hamstring, but Klesko has sat out two straight games with a sore neck.

"We can play better," Jones said. "We've had guys hurt off and on. If we can get everybody in there, then we'll be firing on all cylinders. Yeah, we're playing good, but we can play better."

Lopez's 12th homer came in the seventh, capping a five-run inning that turned the game into a rout. Andres Galarraga also homered for the Braves, a two-run drive in the first.

"I'm really surprised when we lose," Galarraga said. "I don't want to sound cocky or say anything, but as soon as you get to the park you look at the lineup, you see one of the best pitchers and you have a good feeling about winning the game."

Neagle (7-1) allowed seven hits in seven innings, improving to 15-1 at Turner Field and 16-1 in home games since he joined the Braves in 1996. Going back to his tenure with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Neagle is 30-3 in 52 home starts since the beginning of 1995.

Neagle pitched well despite arriving at the park with a stomach ache and fouling a ball off his right foot in the fifth.

"I feel like I'm right on pace to do what I did last year," said Neagle, a 20-game winner in 1997. "If I duplicate last season, I'll be more than happy."

After Miguel Batista (1-2) retired the first two Atlanta hitters in the opening inning, Chipper Jones singled and Galarraga hit a 1-0 pitch into the left-center bleachers for his 18th homer.

Atlanta increased the lead to 4-1 on run-scoring doubles by Chipper Jones in the fifth and Andruw Jones in the sixth, and the Braves blew it open in the seventh against Marc Valdes. Galarraga picked up his third RBI of the night with a bloop single before Lopez cleared the bases with his second career slam.

"The old ballpark (Atlanta-Fulton Couty Stadium) was known as a hitter's park, and it was just a few feet away," Montreal manager Felipe Alou said. "It's the same altitude from sea level. You still hit toward downtown. Players get used to a park and then hit better in it."

Rondell White, one of the few recognizable players on Montreal's financially strapped roster, hit a solo homer in the sixth for the only run against Neagle.

The left-hander's only home loss since joining the Braves came against Montreal last Sept. 21.

Shane Andrews hit his 10th homer in the season in the ninth off Mark Wohlers.

Notes: Atlanta outfielder Curtis Pride, who was ejected the previous night after a brief fight with Chicago Cubs catcher Sandy Martinez, wasn't able to play because of a bruised right arm. He wasn't hurt in the fight, but the home-plate collision that ignited it. ... The game drew 28,662, the smallest crowd of the year at Turner Field. ... The Atlanta starters in this three-game series Neagle, Greg Maddux and Dennis Martinez have 503 career wins; Montreal's three scheduled starters have won a total of two. ... Montreal began a 12-game, 13-day road trip. ... Atlanta's Ozzie Guillen made his first career appearance at first base.