Chipper Jones also contributed a homer and four RBIs for the Braves (9-8), who will go for a series sweep this afternoon in the finale of a nine-game road trip at Great American Ball Park.

The trip began with gloomy series losses in Pittsburgh and Washington.

quot;Hopefully we can come out tomorrow and get a big victory, to salvage what looked like a shaky road trip,quot; said Lowe, who worked seven strong innings, allowing four hits, two runs and two walks with eight strikeouts.

Someone mentioned to manager Bobby Cox that his Braves still had a chance to post a winning record on the trip. quot;Yes, we do,quot; he said. quot;Which would be big, the way we've gone.quot;

After putting left fielder Garret Anderson on the disabled list Friday and putting All-Star catcher Brian McCann on the DL on Saturday, the Braves vented with nine runs in 5 2/3 innings against previously unbeaten Bronson Arroyo (3-1).

Jones hit an RBI single in the first inning and three-run homer in the second. He's 11-for-23 with three homers in his career against Arroyo.

quot;From a pitching standpoint, you love it when [the team] continues to add runs,quot; said Lowe (2-1), who quashed the Reds' last hope in the fifth inning.

Cincinnati had runners at second and third with none out in a 6-2 game, after a Ryan Hanigan double, an Arroyo sacrifice bunt and a questionable call by the umpire at third base, when replays appeared to show Hanigan was tagged out.

quot;Complaining about it is not going to help,quot; said Lowe, who bore down and struck out the next three batters, the top one-third of the Reds' lineup.

Lowe is 8-2 with a 1.84 ERA in 15 starts since Aug. 11, and eight strikeouts Saturday raised his career total to 1,300 strikeouts in 1,969 1/3 innings.

quot;The fifth inning was the turning point, I thought,quot; said Cox, praising Lowe's escape job. quot;That saved us.quot;

So did Escobar, who hit a double to drive in the first run of the two-run first inning, a single to drive in the first run of the four-run second, and a two-run homer in the sixth.

quot;I'm proud of him,quot; Lowe said of the shortstop, who missed the first three games of the trip with an strained abdominal muscle and was mired in a 1-for-17 slump in four games before Saturday.

In a 4-3 Braves victory Friday, Edinson Volquez hit Escobar in the back with a fastball, and an umpire had to step in front of Escobar after he walked toward the Reds pitcher, accusing him of throwing at him intentionally.

Escobar was asked if that incident added motivation Saturday.

quot;Somewhat, but not necessarily,quot; he answered through an interpreter, bench coach Chino Cadahia. quot;I thought he threw at me yesterday. ... Was it extra motivation? Maybe, maybe not.quot;