PHOENIX _ For the past 10 weeks, the Atlanta Braves have been a good bet to win whenever Mike Foltynewicz has pitched. And lately, if you add catcher Kurt Suzuki to that equation it's been almost a guaranteed positive outcome for the Atlanta squad.
Suzuki hit two home runs for the second time in July and Foltynewicz won his sixth consecutive decision over nine starts Tuesday night when the Braves scored six runs in the late innings of an 8-3 win against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field.
Suzuki's two-run homer in the seventh inning snapped a 2-2 tie and the Braves scored twice more that inning on a throwing error, then added two runs in the eighth including a leadoff homer from Suzuki, the veteran catch whose two multi-homer games this month matched his previous career total.
Matt Kemp added a home run for the Braves, who evened the series at a game apiece and improved to 3-3 on an 11-game, three-city trip that began with a four-game split at Dodger Stadium. They'll finish the Arizona series Wednesday and have a day off Thursday before a four-game series at Philadelphia.
It was the fourth multi-homer of Suzuki's career and second in his seven July starts. He hit two homers July 2 at Oakland, putting the Braves ahead with each of his homers in the second and 12th innings of that 4-3, 12-inning win.
Four of his six homers in July have given the Braves a lead, and 18 of his 30 RBIs this season have come via his 10 home runs. Suzuki is 12-for-32 with six homers and 10 RBIs in eight July games including six Braves wins in the seven games he started. He shares catching duties with primary starter Tyler Flowers.
Once again, the Braves were at their best in a start by Foltynewicz (9-5), who allowed five hits, two runs and three walks, hit two batters and struck out nine in six innings and 119 pitches. The Braves have won nine consecutive games he's started and Foltynewicz is 9-1 with a 3.55 ERA in his past 14 starts including 12 team wins.
The right-hander matched the career-high pitch count he had when he took a no-hitter to the ninth inning June 30 at Oakland. Foltynewicz has thrown more than 100 pitches in each of his past six starts including three games with at least 110.
The heavy workload seems to suit him: He's allowed three runs or fewer in seven consecutive starts and posted a 5-0 record and 2.95 ERA in that span.
The Braves didn't get a hit against Arizona starter Taijuan Walker until Freddie Freeman's fourth-inning single, and they took a 1-0 lead that inning after Freeman's hustle on Kemp's fielder's-choice grounder to second baseman Brandon Drury, who rushed his toss with Freeman bearing down on second base and had the ball sailed past shortstop into left field, allowing Freeman to advance to third and putting runners on corners with one out.
After a walk by Nick Markakis, Matt Adams' ground-out drove in the first run of what was a pitchers' duel most of the night. Until it wasn't.
Walker led off the bottom of the fifth with a game-tying tape-measure home run off Foltynewicz, a shocking development in that it was the first of Walker's career, came on a 96-mph 0-2 fastball, and sailed an estimated 455 feet, extremely long distance for a pitcher to hit one.
He was the 14th major league pitcher to hit a home run this season and the third to do it against the Braves, joining, the Cubs' Mike Montgomery and the Blue Jays' Marcus Stroman. It was the first major league home run for each member of that trio.
After Kemp homered in the sixth for a 2-1 lead, the Diamondbacks answered with a run in the bottom of the inning on a leadoff single and a run-scoring double from Chris Owings. Foltynewicz also hit Chris Ianetta with a pitch in the inning, but struck out three of the last four batters in inning to keep the score tied.
And in the seventh, the Braves blew the game open against Diamondbacks relievers beginning with one-time Braves prospect J.J. Hoover, who gave up the first of Suzuki's homers.
