ATLANTA (AP) -- Talk about a letdown.

Roger Clemens and Greg Maddux, two of baseball's greatest pitchers, faced each other for the first time Saturday -- and looked like they were throwing batting practice.

Instead of the expected 1-0 or 2-1 duel, the Atlanta Braves slugged their way to an 11-7 victory over the New York Yankees as the teams combined for 24 hits.

	Roger Clemens was roughed up Saturday as he allowed six runs -- four earned -- in five innings.

"I don't think anybody in the world could have predicted that," said Atlanta's Brian Jordan, who hit a three-run homer and had four RBI. "When we got to the two-hour mark and it was just the fifth inning, I said to myself, 'This is unbelievable.' I'm just happy to come away with a victory in a game like that."

Javy Lopez put the Braves ahead for good with a two-out, two-run double in the seventh inning, long after Maddux and Clemens had departed. The Braves added three more runs in the eighth, then nearly squandered the lead in the ninth when New York loaded the bases against John Rocker on two walks and a hit batter.

Shane Spencer hit a drive that Trenidad Hubbard caught with his back against the left-field wall, finally ending the 3-hour, 57-minute game.

"I just want to go home," Chipper Jones said.

The Braves ended a streak of eight straight losses to the Yankees in Atlanta, going back to New York's Game 3 victory in the 1996 World Series. The teams also met in the Series last October, the Yankees winning in a sweep.

All signs pointed to a low-scoring game.

Clemens, a five-time AL Cy Young winner, lost a memorable showdown with Boston's Pedro Martinez last Sunday, striking out 13 but giving up a two-run, two-out homer in the ninth. Maddux, who has won four Cy Youngs in the NL, was coming off his first shutout in nearly two years, blanking the Cubs 1-0 on a six-hitter Monday.

But it took only 10 pitches to realize this wasn't going to be a pitchers' duel. The Yankees had four hits and a 2-0 lead before Maddux even got an out, marking the first time he has given up four straight hits at a game's start.

"It's weird," said Maddux, who gave up 13 hits in just 5 2/3 innings. "A week ago, it looked like this game would be 1-0. But it always happens like that."

Clemens gave up only five hits but lasted just five innings, having thrown 119 pitches on a sweltering day in which the temperature climbed into the low 90s. He walked four and was hurt by three errors, including one of his own on an errant pickoff throw.

"I thought I had good enough stuff to get it done," Clemens said.

Manager Joe Torre added, "He wasn't very good. I don't know the reason for it. His stuff was good but he was all over the place."

Lopez drove in three runs after entering the game as a pinch-hitter in the fifth. He tied the score at 6-6 with a run-scoring double against Clemens, then came through again two innings later by lining another double to the gap in left-center against Jason Grimsley (1-1).

The Yankees committed four errors -- their most since a five-error day at Minnesota on Aug. 20, 1998 -- and the Braves capitalized to score four unearned runs.

Lopez's game-winning hit came after Grimsley got the first two outs in the seventh. New York first baseman Tino Martinez made a throwing error on a grounder by Bobby Bonilla, Rafael Furcal was hit by a pitch and both runners moved into scoring position on a wild pitch.

Derek Jeter tied his career-high with four hits and scored three times, but he also made a crucial error in the third on a potential double-play grounder. Jordan followed with his 11th homer of the season.

Maddux, who was 7-1 with a 2.16 ERA, gave up at least one run in every inning but the fifth, finally getting knocked out in the sixth when backup catcher Chris Turner came through with a two-out, run-scoring single to give the Yankees a 7-6 lead.

Maddux allowed the second-most hits in his career and all seven New York runs, his ERA climbing to 2.71.

The top three batters in the New York lineup -- Chuck Knoblauch, Jeter and Paul O'Neill -- combined for nine hits and six runs. The Yankees outhit the Braves 13-11, but Atlanta relievers Mike Remlinger (1-1), Rudy Seanez and Rocker didn't allow a hit over the last 3 1/3 innings.

Turner, who entered the game when Jorge Posada took a foul ball off his right knee in the second, led off the following inning with his first homer since Sept. 24, 1997, while playing for the Anaheim Angels.

The Braves padded their 8-7 lead in the eighth with run-scoring singles by Chipper Jones, Andres Galarraga and Jordan.

Game notes
O'Neill left after batting in the sixth because of soreness in his lower right leg. The injury was not serious but he will take Sunday off. ... Posada was injured when a foul tip by Maddux shattered the catcher's shin guard. X-rays were negative and Posada would have been able to play Sunday, but he already was scheduled to take the day off. ... The only time Maddux gave up more than 13 hits was May 15, 1999, when the Cubs pounded out 14. ... One bright spot for Maddux: He tied Jack Morris' major league record for career putouts by a pitcher (387) by taking a throw at first in the third.