Haren, Hechavarria Lead Marlins To Second Straight Win
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ATLANTA (CBSMiami/AP) — The Miami Marlins are starting to resemble the team that many thought they would be in 2015.
Dan Haren needed one inning to get used to home plate umpire Alan Porter's strike zone.
Once he started hitting his spots, Haren built momentum to keep Atlanta's hitters guessing.
Haren had two walks in the first. He approached the umpire after the third out to discuss pitch location.
"I just asked him where he had them," Haren said. "He said they were close. I told him, `I'm going to stay right there and keep pounding it.' After a while he was calling them, (and I) got in a good groove."
Haren gave up three hits in seven innings, Adeiny Hechavarria went 3 for 3 with a homer and three RBIs and the Marlins beat the Atlanta Braves 6-2 on Wednesday.
With its second straight victory, Miami has its first winning streak of the season.
Haren (1-0) allowed just three base runners - two walks in the first and an error by second baseman Dee Gordon that let Freddie Freeman reach in the fourth - before Andrelton Simmons got the first hit off the right-hander with two outs in the fifth.
Cameron Maybin led off the Atlanta sixth with his second homer of the season to make it 5-1. Kelly Johnson led off the Braves' seventh with his first homer of the season to cut the lead to 5-2.
Haren, who was replaced by Mike Dunn to begin the eighth, walked two and struck out five. He has won four straight decisions against the Braves.
"He put a little on, took a little off, hit every location," Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez said of Haren. "Guys were coming back shaking their heads. He hit his spots, and it's hard to score some when you get three hits."
The Marlins went up 2-0 in the third on Gordon's two-run double. They took a 4-0 lead on Hechavarria's first homer, a two-run shot in the fifth.
Celebrating his 26th birthday, Hechavarria has gone 7 for his past 11, raising his average to .242 after beginning the season 1 for 22. He added a sacrifice fly to make it 6-2 in the ninth.
Atlanta starter Eric Stults (0-1) gave up five hits, four runs and two walks with two strikeouts in five innings.
Cody Martin, the first Braves reliever, allowed Michael Morse's first homer of the season in the sixth, which put the Marlins up 5-0.
Gordon has reached safely in eight of nine games after going 2 for 4 and raised his average 14 points to .378. Marlins manager Mike Redmond likes how Gordon's approach affected the lineup as Miami scored a combined 14 runs the past two days.
In their previous 10 games at Turner Field, the Marlins scored a combined 25 runs.
"The key to this whole thing is guys relaxing," Redmond said. "You're starting to see guys now taking a deep breath and starting to focus on having a good at-bat, square the ball up."
Miami closer Steve Cisek, pitching in a non-save situation, faced the minimum in the ninth.
Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton batted without a protective mask on the left side of his batting helmet when facing left-handers. Stanton, who went 0 for 4, is still wearing the mask against right-handers.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Marlins: Manager Mike Redmond said LF Christian Yelich could return to the lineup for the next game Thursday at the New York Mets. Yelich is getting heat treatments for tightness in his back. ... Ichiro Suzuki played for the second straight game in Yelich's spot, going 0 for 4.
Braves: LHP Mike Minor still hasn't thrown off a mound as he recovers from shoulder inflammation on the 15-day disabled list.
UP NEXT
Marlins: RHP Jarred Cosart (0-1) tries to win for the first time in six starts when Miami visits the New York Mets on Thursday.
Braves: RHP Julio Teheran (2-0) will face Toronto for the second time in his career and first time since June 10, 2012.
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