Atlanta ? When Tim Hudson took the mound in the top of the first inning, he didn’t even realize Chipper Jones was back at third base.

“I don’t know how smart that was,” Hudson said, laughing.

He sure noticed when Jones homered on the first pitch he saw in his return to the lineup. Given an early lead, Hudson took a shutout into the eighth inning, and the Atlanta Braves beat the Florida Marlins, 5-2, Wednesday.

“All of a sudden, he gets in there and whacks a homer,” Hudson said. “Hopefully, he’s in there to stay.”

Adam LaRoche hit three doubles and drove in three runs for the Braves, and Andruw Jones also homered. But everyone pointed to how important it was to have Chipper Jones in the lineup for the first time in more than a week.

“You know he can do damage,” LaRoche said. “It took a lot of the weight off a lot of guys’ shoulders, not feeling like we had to do it all. We’ve been pressing a little bit.”

The teams split a two-game series at Turner Field, leaving the Marlins (15-10) with a percentage-point lead over Atlanta (16-11) in the NL East.

“It’s going to be a battle until the end of the season,” said Hudson, who gave up five hits and one earned run in 71/3 innings. “They’re not going to go away, and neither are we.”

Jones hurt his left foot while running the bases April 24. He didn’t start the next seven games and still was in pain Wednesday, but decided it was time to play.

“The first instant that I thought I could play, I was going to get out there,” he said.

He didn’t take long to make an impact.

In the bottom of the first, Jones connected on a first-pitch fastball from A.J. Burnett. The drive struck the top of the right-field wall and skipped into the seats for Jones’ fifth homer of the season.

He was looking for a fastball after Burnett retired the first two hitters on two pitches.

Burnett (3-2) had won three straight decisions, but he’s 0-2 against the Braves this season.

Pirates 6, Astros 3

Houston — Daryle Ward hit a tiebreaking homer in the ninth, Jason Bay followed with a two-run shot, and Houston’s bullpen blew another win for Roger Clemens.

Clemens was denied in his fifth straight bid to win his 330th game, remaining tied with Steve Carlton for ninth place on the career list.

Brewers 4, Cubs 3

Milwaukee — Damian Miller drew a bases-loaded walk with two outs in the ninth inning, giving Milwaukee its sixth consecutive victory. Derrick Turnbow (2-1) pitched a perfect ninth, stretching his scoreless streak to 10 innings.

Bill Hall, who has three consecutive three-hit games, doubled with one out off Roberto Novoa (0-1). Geoff Jenkins was intentionally walked, and Carlos Lee flied out to right, with Hall moving to third. Lyle Overbay was walked intentionally to load the bases. Miller then worked a 3-2 count and fouled off the sixth offering from Novoa before taking the walk on an inside pitch.

Cardinals 7, Reds 3

Cincinnati — Scott Rolen returned from a sore back and hit a two-run homer, sparking St. Louis to a three-game sweep of Cincinnati. Mark Mulder’s seven shutout innings also helped St. Louis improve the NL’s best record to 18-8, the Cardinals’ best start since 1948.

Mulder (4-1), acquired from Oakland in December, allowed only three singles — two of them infield hits — over seven innings. He retired his last 13 batters and didn’t allow a runner past first base.

Mets 3, Phillies 2

New York — Jae Seo pitched one-hit ball for seven shutout innings, and streaking slugger Cliff Floyd homered and made an outstanding catch that saved two runs to lead New York past Philadelphia.

Victor Diaz also connected to end a long slump, and Floyd added an RBI single as the Mets won for the third time in four games following a four-game losing streak.

Chase Utley and Bobby Abreu hit consecutive homers off Braden Looper in the ninth.

Padres 8, Rockies 7, 12 innings

San Diego — Ryan Klesko’s second homer tied the game in the ninth inning, and Miguel Ojeda singled in the winning run with two outs in the 12th as San Diego beat Colorado, handing the Rockies their eighth straight loss.

Nationals 5, Dodgers 2

Los Angeles — Livan Hernandez pitched his first complete game of the season, Nick Johnson had a homer and an RBI single, and Washington beat Los Angeles. Hernandez (4-2) scattered seven hits and went the distance for the 41st time in 255 career starts.

Diamondbacks 6, Giants 2

Phoenix — Chris Snyder had a run-scoring double that capped a four-run fourth inning and made a key pickoff throw, leading Arizona over San Francisco. Brandon Webb (4-0) won for the first time since mid-April, and Luis Gonzalez had three hits.