Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Tim Hudson throws to the Philadelphia Phillies during the first inning of their baseball game on Sunday, July 29, 2012, at Turner Field in Atlanta.ATLANTA – Chipper Jones says the Phillies became a mental hurdle for the Braves during Philadelphia’s run of five straight NL East titles.
Atlanta has cleared that hurdle with six straight wins over the Phillies this month.
Jones and Jason Heyward homered off Roy Halladay, and the Braves completed a three-game sweep of last-place Philadelphia with a 6-2 victory Sunday.
Atlanta also swept a three-game series at Philadelphia from July 6-8. The Braves have won six straight over the Phillies for the first time since 1996-97, according to STATS LLC.
“It’s a big, big sweep for us,” Jones said. “I think mentally as a team you’ve got to get over certain humps, and Philly as a team has been a big hump for us. They’ve been winning the division for a long time and they’ve handled us pretty well. Now we’ve got to get over that hump of beating the Nationals. The Nationals have had our number a little bit the last couple of years, and they’re the team ahead of us, so we have to get going.”