Atlanta Braves’ Chipper Jones, left, runs to first base after hitting a single to score Michael Bourn, right, in the third inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Sunday, Sept. 16, 2012, in Atlanta.ATLANTA – Mike Minor threw six strong innings, Dan Uggla broke it open with a two-run single and the Atlanta Braves denied Gio Gonzalez his 20th win, completing a sweep of the first-place Washington Nationals 2-1 on Sunday night.
Minor (9-10) allowed five hits before turning it over to the bullpen. Cory Gearrin, Luis Avilan and Chad Durbin each worked a scoreless inning to close it out.
The Braves broke a scoreless tie in the third against Gonzalez (19-8) on Chipper Jones’ single. Freddie Freeman added a sacrifice fly. Washington closed to 2-1 on Ian Desmond’s RBI single in the sixth, but the Braves pulled away with a three-run seventh, taking advantage of an error by third baseman Ryan Zimmerman. Michael Bourn scored on a groundout and Uggla came through with his two-out hit.