2B Brandon Phillips did not start but still extended his hitting streak to 13 games with an RBI single in the seventh inning as a pinch hitter. Phillips' single pulled the Braves within 4-3. Phillips is hitting .391 (18 for 46) during the streak and has reached base safely in his last 18 games dating back to April 7.

2B Brandon Phillips was back in the Braves' lineup Saturday after missing two games with a groin injury, but instead of batting in his usual leadoff spot, manager Brian Snitker opted to move Phillips down to sixth in the order in an effort to ease him back into action as well as avoid having three lefties atop the lineup. Snitker said Phillips would be limited to pinch-hitting duties Sunday but be back to full ability Monday night.

2B Brandon Phillips took batting practice and ground balls at second base but got another day off Friday while he recovers from a strained left groin. Manager Brian Snitker hopes to have Phillips back in the lineup Saturday. Phillips is batting .352 this season with five doubles, two home runs and nine RBIs.

2B Brandon Phillips (left groin) did not play Thursday, when the Braves beat the Mets, 7-5. Phillips was injured during an attempted steal of second base in the first inning Wednesday night. Manager Brian Snitker said Wednesday he didn't believe the injury was serious and that Phillips could return to the lineup Friday, when the Braves begin a three-game series against the Brewers. Phillips is in the midst of an 11-game hitting streak and is batting .352 overall with two homers and nine RBIs in 19 games this season.

2B Brandon Phillips (left groin) was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the second inning of the Braves' 8-2 win over the Mets on Wednesday night. Phillips singled in the first inning to extend his hitting streak to 11 games before injuring himself while trying to steal second. He beat the throw from Mets C Travis d'Arnaud but overslid the bag and was tagged out. Phillips played the field in the bottom of the inning before INF Jace Peterson batted for him in the second. Manager Brian Snitker said Phillips is day-to-day and could be available as a pinch-hitter in Thursday's series finale. Phillips is batting .390 (16-for-41) during his hitting streak and .352 overall with two homers and nine RBIs in 19 games this season.

2B Brandon Phillips extended his hitting streak to 10 games when he singled in the fourth inning. He finished with a pair of singles and also stole his fifth base of the season.

2B Brandon Phillips reached base safely for the 14th consecutive game in a 4-3 Atlanta loss Saturday night. Phillips extended the streak with a fourth-inning RBI double. He later hit a game-tying solo homer in the ninth inning with two outs that sent the game to extra innings. The home run brought him one shy of 200 for his career.

2B Brandon Phillips reached safely for the 13th consecutive game during a 4-3 Braves loss in Philadelphia Friday. Phillips went 1-for-4 with a single. His average now stands at .323 on the year.

2B Brandon Phillips was 3-for-4 with three RBIs, two runs scored and a stolen base on Sunday against the Padres. He was 2-for-2 with runners in scoring position after starting the season 1-for-11 in those situations.

2B Brandon Phillips smashed his first homer for the Braves and it broke a tie in the sixth inning of a 4-2 victory over San Diego on Saturday. It was his only hit in four at-bats, but the former Gold Glover turned a nifty double play during a seventh-inning jam. Phillips had grounded back to the mound his first two times up before lifting a pitch from LHP Clayton Richard over the fence in left-center field.

2B Brandon Phillips was hard on himself for not producing more Friday in a loss. Saturday, he went 2-for-4 and reached on a hit batsman. He singled and scored and doubled and scored. He also grounded into a double play and popped out with one out and two on in the ninth.

2B Brandon Phillips had a mostly forgettable day. After grounding out with one out in the second, he hit into an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the fourth. He struck out with runners at second and third and one out in the sixth. In the eighth, Phillips drove in two runs with a double to left to bring the Braves to within a run, 5-4. But it was the earlier at-bats that lingered with him. "I'm in that situation, I'm supposed to do my job," he said of the double play. "That game was on me. I've got to do my job regardless, especially when there's less than two outs. That's something that I normally always do. I talked to my hitting coach. He told me what I was doing wrong. I fixed it on my last at-bat. But early on, small little things can really change the game, and at the beginning of the game I just put that game on my back. I've just got to pick my team up tomorrow. I should have done my job. I didn't do my job."

2B Brandon Phillips went 0-for-3 Thursday night as one of the most unique hitting streaks in baseball history ended in the Braves' 6-2 loss to the Mets. Phillips, who was on deck when the final out was recorded, opened his career by hitting in his first 35 games against the Mets in New York -- the first 10 games at Shea Stadium from 2006 through 2008 and the next 25 at Citi Field. All but the final two games of the streak came with Phillips as a member of the Cincinnati Reds, who traded him to the Braves on?Feb. 12. The streak was the longest by an opposing player in a road stadium since Joe Medwick hit in 46 straight games for the St. Louis Cardinals against the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field from 1933 through 1937. Phillips is a lifetime .331 hitter against the Mets in New York with six homers and 29 RBIs.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- The Atlanta Braves have confidence that the offensive improvement they showed the final two months a year ago wasn't a mirage, and they think that the three stop-gap veteran starters added for 2017 will stabilize the rotation.If that is the case, the Braves could outperform most predictions and avoid a third straight losing season as they move into their new suburban ballpark just outside Atlanta.The Braves won 20 of their last 30 games in 2016 to finish 37-35 after the All-Star break, and that took some of the sting away from another season of more than 90 loses."We had a really good second half," Braves president of baseball operations John Hart said. "The players feel that they can compete and win this year."The Braves went from averaging 3.4 runs per game to 5.2 after acquiring veteran outfielder Matt Kemp from the San Diego Padres and promoting shortstop Dansby Swanson from the minors.First baseman Freddie Freeman thrived with Kemp batting behind him and there... [More]

2B Brandon Phillips, who grew up just outside Atlanta, will get to play at home this season after a trade from the Cincinnati Reds and the veteran gives the Braves the opportunity to not rush infield prospect Ozzie Albies. "For this year, I think he's going to be a perfect fit," said John Hart, the Braves' president of baseball operations. "Brandon buys us time." Phillips, 35, is in the final season of a long-term contract and the Reds are paying all except $1 million of his salary.

2B Brandon Phillips remained out of the lineup for the season finale due to a deep bone bruise in his left hand. He hasn't played since Tuesday. An MRI exam Friday showed no structural damage.

2B Brandon Phillips is out with a deep bone bruise in his left hand. He might be a pinch-hit option if he can swing the bat. He hasn't played since Tuesday.

2B Brandon Phillips (sore left hand) sat out Thursday for the second evening in a row. Manager Bryan Price said Phillips appeared to injure the hand while swinging and missing at a Matt Bowman pitch in the seventh Tuesday night. It was not known whether Phillips would be available for the weekend.

2B Brandon Phillips (left hand) sat out for the second straight game Thursday.

2B Brandon Phillips (sore left hand) left the Tuesday game before the bottom of the seventh inning, and he didn't play Wednesday. Manager Bryan Price said Phillips appeared to injure the hand while swinging and missing at a Matt Bowman pitch in the seventh Tuesday night. It was not known whether Phillips would be available Thursday night.