PITTSBURGH -- Ervin Santana said "everything" was off when he took the mound Monday. Mikhail Sergachev Jersey . No matter. His Atlanta Braves teammates gave him a six-run lead before he threw a pitch. Jason Heyward and Andrelton Simmons homered to begin a big first inning, and the Braves beat the sliding Pittsburgh Pirates 7-3 on Monday night for their fourth consecutive victory. The early outburst was enough for Santana, who allowed three solo homers among nine hits in 5 1-3 innings. "I know I didnt have my stuff today, but for me it was one of my best games because I gave up three runs," said Santana (13-6), who improved to 8-1 over his past 10 starts. "Anytime you give up three runs or less, its a good outing. So Ill take it". Pittsburgh has lost six in a row. Starling Marte went deep twice, and Neil Walker added a homer that became the first to reach the Allegheny River beyond right field at PNC Park this season. Relievers Luis Avilan, David Hale and James Russell combined for 3 2-3 hitless innings for Atlanta, which broke a tie with Pittsburgh for third place in the National League wild-card standings. "We went through these tough stretches in April and early May and weve played really good baseball up until this last week," Pirates second baseman Neil Walker said. "Were still the same team." Heyward and Simmons started the game with the Braves fifth set of back-to-back home runs this season, and it got worse from there for Vance Worley (5-3). Chris Johnson and Gerald Laird had run-scoring singles as Atlanta bolted to a 6-0 lead. "I know we didnt score a whole lot the rest of the way," said Heyward, who had had three hits and a sacrifice fly. "But still, thats a lot of pressure for a team to come back against." Worley managed to pitch six innings and was charged with five earned runs. He allowed nine hits, struck out four and walked two. "After (the first inning), I figured it out," Worley said. "It clicked, I was able to drive the ball down in the zone and get the results that I needed." TRAINERS ROOM Braves: During a rehabilitation outing for Triple-A Gwinnett, RHP Shae Simmons (right shoulder strain) did not record an out and was charged with four runs. He walked two and allowed two hits while throwing 21 pitches. Pirates: After taking live batting practice prior to the game, OF Andrew McCutchen (left rib fracture) said he expects to come off the DL on Tuesday. ... SS Jordy Mercer (right forearm tightness) was not in the lineup for the fourth consecutive game. A FIRST AT FIRST The Pirates Pedro Alvarez started at first base in his first career appearance at any spot other than third. Alvarez, whose 25 errors lead the majors, had seven put-outs. His first chance was an errant throw by second baseman Neil Walker that led to two runs being scored. LATE ARRIVAL Because the Braves did not get into Pittsburgh until 3 a.m. Monday morning, manager Fredi Gonzalez elected to rest regulars B.J. Upton and Evan Gattis. BACK-TO-BACK BEGINNING Heywards homer was his third of the season to lead off a game and sixth of his career. According to STATS, Monday was the fifth time the Braves began a game with consecutive home runs. UP NEXT Braves: Tuesday starter RHP Aaron Harang (9-7, 3.51 ERA) has 15 career wins against the Pirates. Pirates: Despite having a 2.36 ERA over 42 innings in seven starts since coming off the DL, LHP Francisco Liriano (3-9, 3.78 ERA) has lost three of five decisions. Hes lost his past two outings. Yanni Gourde Jersey . The NFL says Wednesday that the game between the Atlanta Falcons and Detroit Lions at Wembley on Oct. 26 will start at 1:30 p. Andrei Vasilevskiy Jersey . -- Kurt Buschs Sunday at Martinsville Speedway, in some ways, was like his career wrapped into one afternoon. http://www.cheaplightningjerseys.com/?tag=adidas-steven-stamkos-jersey . Duhamel, from Lively, Ont., and Radford, from Balmertown, Ont., were second with 77.01 points, just behind Olympic bronze medallists Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy of Germany. The four-time world champs lead at 79.Atlanta, GA (SportsNetwork.com) - Balanced scoring and a dominant fourth quarter helped the NBAs hottest team to another win on Sunday. Kyle Korver hit 5-for-7 from long distance and led eight Hawks in double figures with 19 points as the Atlanta Hawks toppled the Washington Wizards 120-89 for their eighth straight win. DeMarre Carroll gave 16 points with four steals, Al Horford netted 15 points and Jeff Teague had 11 with a game-high 10 assists for Atlanta, winners in 22 of 24 since a 7-6 start. Atlanta has a 3 1/2 game lead on Toronto and Chicago for best record in the East. It kicks off a stretch of four road games in five days in Philadelphia on Tuesday. John Wall paced the Wizards with 15 points and eight assists, but he committed eight of their 20 turnovers. Atlanta turned the ball over just nine times as a team. Final Score: Miami 104, LA Clippers 90 Los Angeles, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Chris Bosh scored 34 points to lead the Miami Heat to a 104-90 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday and center Hassan Whiteside added career highs of 23 points and 16 rebounds. Dwyane Wade scored 17 with 10 assists for the Heat, who have won two of three on the heels of a four-game losing streak. Blake Griffin had 26 points and Chris Paul scored 23 with nine assists for the Clippers, who finished a 6-3 homestand. Final Score: Memphis 122, Phoenix 110 (2-OT) Memphis, TN (SportsNetwork.com) - Zach Randolph had 27 points and 17 rebounds as the Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Phoenix Suns 122-110 in double overtime on Sunday. Mike Conley posted 25 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, while Courtney Lee netted 18 points for Memphis, which blew a 14-point fourth-quarter leaad, but outscored Phoenix 14-2 in the second overtime to snap a brief two-game skid. Wholesale Lightning Jerseys. Marc Gasol supplied seven of his 12 points in the second extra session. Alex Len tallied 14 points and 13 boards, Isaiah Thomas poured in 20 points off the bench and Markieff Morris provided 17 points and six rebounds for the Suns, who have dropped two straight on the heels of a four-game winning streak. Final Score: Sacramento 103, Cleveland 84 Sacramento, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - DeMarcus Cousins had 26 points and 13 rebounds as the Sacramento Kings routed the LeBron James-less Cleveland Cavaliers 103-84 on Sunday. Rudy Gay netted 23 points and Darren Collison added 16 points and six assists for the Sacramento, which has won three of its last five games. James missed his eighth straight game with a sore knee and Cleveland fell to 1-7 in that stretch. Kevin Love posted 25 points and 10 rebounds, Kyrie Irving supplied 21 points and seven assists and Timofey Mozgov provided 14 points and 12 boards for the Cavaliers, whose fifth consecutive loss dropped them to .500 (19-19) for the first time since Nov. 26 when they were 7-7. Final Score: Portland 106, LA Lakers 94 Los Angeles, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Damian Lillard had 34 points and seven assists as the Portland Trail Blazers defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 106-94 on Sunday night. LaMarcus Aldridge posted 15 points and nine rebounds, while Wesley Matthews added 16 points and five helpers for Portland, which has won eight of its last nine games. Wesley Johnson netted 17 points to lead the Lakers, who were without Kobe Bryant due to rest. LA fell to 2-4 on the season without him in the lineup. ' ' '