Campillo, McCann key Atlanta rout
Associated Press
Monday, July 14, 2008
SAN DIEGO — All-Star catcher Brian McCann says he likes being "locked in." His Atlanta Braves teammates like him that way, too. McCann homered and drove in three runs to help the Braves rout the San Diego Padres 12-3 on Sunday in the rubber game of the three-game series. McCann extended his on-base streak to eight straight plate appearances. "It's good to be locked in. You try to stay locked in as long as you can, because you know that at some point, you're gonna come out of it," McCann said. "Baseball's up and down. I was down for about two or three weeks where I wasn't hitting anything. That's just baseball." McCann hit his 18th home run off of Padres reliever Josh Banks in the seventh inning. That was after his RBI single in the Braves three-run first inning and before his RBI double in a three-run ninth. "I think Brian is one of those cerebral hitters who's able to make adjustments on the fly," said Chipper Jones, who will join McCann at the All-Star game. "Not everyone can do that." Braves manager Bobby Cox notched his 2,300 career win, fourth all-time among managers. "Oh, I didn't know that. Now I can tell my wife. She always asks me, and I never have a clue," Cox said. The woeful Padres lost their second straight and are 37-58, 10 games behind Arizona in the NL West. They are 23-30 at home and 14-28 on the road. "It would have been good to get to the break with a 'W' today," Padres manager Bud Black said. "But they broke out today." Mark Teixeira had two doubles and two RBIs, and Brent Lillibridge went 3-for-5 with two RBIs. The Braves took a 3-0 lead in the first on Teixeira's two-run double off Padres starter Randy Wolf (6-9). Atlanta chased Wolf with a five-run sixth inning that featured five singles, and tacked on three more runs in the ninth. Atlanta's Tim Hudson made his first Major League relief appearance in his nine-year career, pitching a perfect eighth. DP-Atlanta 1, San Diego 1. LOB-Atlanta 8, San Diego 6. 2B-Teixeira 2 (23), McCann (27), Lillibridge (4). 3B-Gerut (2). HR-McCann (18), Kouzmanoff (12), Headley (6). S-Prado. SF-CJones. Wolf pitched to 3 in the 6th. HBP-by Wolf (McCann), by Wolf (GBlanco). Umpires-Home, Brian Knight; First, Jeff Kellogg; Second, Rob Drake; Third, Brian Runge. T-2:53. A-31,347 (42,691).
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