Rockies Win in Familiar Fashion, 9-6

The Colorado Rockies used a familiar formula to win again at Coors Field.

“We played more like the Rockies of old,” Manager Don Baylor said after a 9-6 victory Wednesday over the Atlanta Braves at Denver. “We did things that we always do in this ballpark, like hitting home runs, and we got some big two-out hits.”

Andres Galarraga and Jeff Reed provided the home runs. Each had a two-run homer among his three hits.

Galarraga increased his major league RBIs lead to 68 with two, and Reed drove in three runs.

“He [Brad Clontz] usually pitches me away,” Reed said. “He threw me a pitch out over the plate, I got it up in the air and the ball went out.”

Fred McGriff, Chipper Jones and Eddie Perez homered for Atlanta.

The Rockies won twice in the three-game series with Atlanta and the paid crowd of 48,633 and actual attendance of 50,212 were Rockie franchise records.

John Thomson (2-4) went 6 2/3 innings to earn his second career victory. He gave up four runs and nine hits.

Chris Brock lost in his big league debut. Called up this week from triple-A Richmond, he left after issuing a leadoff walk in the fifth inning. He gave up seven hits and two runs.

“Brock pitched well. He threw some quality pitches and gave up some runs,” Atlanta Manager Bobby Cox said. “It’s hard to judge anybody in this ballpark.”

Colorado’s Larry Walker went 0 for 3, dropping his major league-best average to .410. He left the game after the sixth inning because of soreness in his left knee.

Montreal 4, Philadelphia 3--Mark Grudzielanek’s run-scoring double with two out in the eighth inning at Montreal lifted the Expos to their sixth consecutive victory.

In the eighth, F.P. Santangelo singled with one out off Jerry Spradlin (1-3) and Mike Lansing grounded into a fielder’s choice. Grudzielanek followed with a liner into the left-field corner as the Expos matched their longest winning streak of the season.

Jim Bullinger (4-5) gave up three runs and six hits in eight innings and won his second start in a row. He struck out six and walked two. Ugueth Urbina pitched the ninth for his 10th save.

Philadelphia, loser of 10 of its last 12 games, tied it, 3-3, in the top of the eighth on Mickey Morandini’s run-scoring bloop single. In the sixth, the Expos had taken a 3-2 lead on a leadoff homer by Lansing, who won Tuesday’s game against the Phillies with a two-run single.

Chicago 5, New York 4--Scott Servais scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch by Greg McMichael with two out in the eighth at New York, stopping the Cubs’ six-game losing streak.

After John Olerud hit a three-run homer for the Mets in the top of the eighth that made it 4-4, the Cubs came back as Servais led off with a single, moved up on Rey Sanchez’s sacrifice and took third on a groundout. McMichael (3-5) then threw a wild pitch with a 1-and-2 count on Doug Glanville.

The Mets trailed, 4-1, with one out in the eighth when Carl Everett doubled off rookie starter Jeremi Gonzalez. Bob Patterson walked pinch-hitter Butch Huskey and then gave up Olerud’s 11th homer.

Todd Hundley hit his 14th homer, a solo shot for the Mets in the fourth.

Florida 6, San Francisco 3--Bobby Bonilla homered and drove in four runs and Moises Alou had three hits as the Marlins defeated the Giants at San Francisco.

The Marlins scored four runs in the first inning against Kirk Rueter (2-2). Jim Eisenreich reached base on shortstop Jose Vizcaino’s throwing error, then scored on Gary Sheffield’s double.

Alou walked before Bonilla homered into the left-field bleachers.

But Helling walked four in the bottom of the first, and San Francisco narrowed it to 4-2.

Hamilton doubled, Vizcaino walked and, one out later, Barry Bonds and J.T. Snow walked. Glenallen Hill hit a sacrifice fly and after a walk to Mark Lewis, Rick Wilkins struck out.

Cincinnati 2, Pittsburgh 1--Terry Pendleton’s pinch double broke a seventh-inning tie as the Reds came from behind for the second consecutive night and defeated the Pirates at Cincinnati.

The Reds swept the two-game series and got their fifth victory in six games overall by getting to starter Esteban Loaiza (5-3) in the seventh inning after Manager Gene Lamont let the pitcher hit with a runner at second and two out in the top of the inning.

Hal Morris started the go-ahead rally in the seventh with a single--only the fourth hit off Loaiza--and took third on Bret Boone’s double to left-center. Joe Oliver’s sacrifice fly tied the score, 1-1, and Pendleton drove in the second run with a double to the warning track in center over the head of Adrian Brown, who was playing shallow.

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BESTS OF THE DAY

BATTING

Player: Jeff Reed

Team: Colorado

Performance: 3 for 3, 3 RBIs, two-run homer

Team’s Result: Win

*

Player: Andres Galarraga

Team: Colorado

Performance: 3 for 5, 2 RBIs, two-run homer

Team’s Result: Win

*

Player: Bobby Bonilla

Team: Florida

Performance: 2 for 4, 4 RBIs, homer

Team’s Result: Win

*

Player: John Olerud

Team: New York

Performance: 2 for 4, three-run homer in eighth

Team’s Result: Loss

PITCHING

Player: Jim Bullinger

Team: Montreal

Performance: 8 innings, 6 hits, 6 strikeouts

Team’s Result: Win

*

Player: Brett Tomko

Team: Cincinnati

Performance: 7 innings, 4 hits, 1 run, 5 strikeouts

Team’s Result: Win