ATLANTA -- Jon Lester got his second half off to a stellar start, flirting with a no-hitter even though neither he nor the 45,758 at Turner Field may have known about it.The left-hander gave up two hits over 7 1/3 innings on Saturday night in the Cubs' 4-0 victory over the Braves. In the Atlanta first, Lester had served up what was ruled an infield single by Nick Markakis, who reached after hitting a ball that bounced past third baseman Kris Bryant. It was the only hit off Lester heading into the top of the seventh, when official scorer Jack Wilkinson changed the call to an error on Bryant.That meant zero hits. 
Lester had thrown 97 pitches, and A.J. Pierzynski then hit a clean single to right off Lester to lead off the eighth. One out later, Andrelton Simmons singled to chase the lefty. Atlanta's Manny Banuelos took the loss, serving up two runs on RBI singles by Anthony Rizzo and Starlin Castro.MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Home sweet home: Pitching in his offseason hometown, Lester looked right at home. In his last seven starts with the Cubs, he now has given up 10 earned runs over 45 2/3 innings. It was his first win since May 16, ending a string of 10 straight winless outings. He was pulled after serving up a single to Simmons on his 110th pitch of the night.Unfortunate eighth: Just one day after Eury Perez had his game-winning hit against the Cubs in the eighth inning, he came close to having another opportunity. Perez was preparing to pinch-hit against Lester with runners on first and second and one out in the eighth, but when Chicago decided to pull Lester in favor of Hector Rondon, Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez called Perez back and opted to go with the left-handed-hitting Kelly Johnson, who flied out to left. Jace Peterson followed up with his third strikeout of the game to end the eighth-inning threat.Kid stuff: In an attempt to get Bryant back on track, Cubs manager Joe Maddon inserted the rookie ahead of Rizzo in the lineup. It worked in the third. With two outs, Bryant singled and reached third on an errant pickoff attempt by Banuelos before scoring on Rizzo's single.Brief Banuelos start: Banuelos lasted only 4 2/3 innings, exiting after walking Chris Denorfia to load the bases. While Banuelos has flashed promise in his short tenure with the Braves this season, the 24-year-old hasn't managed to pitch longer than 5 2/3 innings in four Major League starts. He is on an innings limit after recovering from Tommy John surgery last season.SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
Jason Frasor came on in relief in the top of the fifth for Atlanta. The right-hander is the 51st player used by the Braves this season, a franchise single-season record. Coincidentally, Frasor also wears No. 51 for Atlanta.The win snapped the Cubs' eight-game losing streak in Atlanta, which dated back to July 5, 2012.Carrie Muskat/ MLB.com
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