ATLANTA — The Yankees, who arrived here tired and somewhat tense, having lost their division lead, momentum and their two most imposing sluggers, found that a weekend in Atlanta was good for their disposition, as well as their standing.
The Yankees completed a three-game sweep of the Braves on Sunday with a 20-6 pounding, collecting 21 hits, including home runs by Jacoby Ellsbury, Chase Headley and Stephen Drew.
If this was not the Braves of Glavine, Maddux and Smoltz, it was nevertheless heartening for the Yankees that their outburst in this series, in which they scored 38 runs, came largely without their two leading sluggers, Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez, and on the backs of a monthlong hitting slump.