San Diego, CA (Sports Network) - Miguel Olivo homered and drove in four runs, and Ubaldo Jimenez took a no-hitter into the sixth inning to get his 14th victory of the season, as Colorado held off the San Diego Padres, 10-6, to open a three-game series.
Rockies Clobber Kevin Correia In Providing Ubaldo Jimenez Much-Needed Support
Carlos Gonzalez and Ryan Spilborghs each smacked a two-run homer for the Rockies, who snapped a two-game skid.
“I wasn’t anticipating the final score to be 10-6, I really wasn’t,” said Rockies manager Jim Tracy. “A lot of credit to our offense. We took some great at-bats tonight. You hit four home runs in this ballpark, and two of them to right field, you’ve done some hittin’.”
Jimenez (14-1) surrendered four hits and four runs, walked four and had seven strikeouts. The right-hander, who threw a no-hitter April 17 against Atlanta, is 8-0 over his last nine starts with his lone loss coming May 9 on the road against the Dodgers.
“This year I think he’s put it all together as far as his ability to command his stuff,” Padres manager Bud Black said of Jimenez. “I think the first couple years of his career that was a little bit of the flaw. But this year, there’s no doubt that he’s put it together.”
The Padres trailed 8-0, but actually came within a few inches of tying the game. They were within 8-5 in the seventh, and with two men on base Scott Hairston hit a ball off the padding at the top of the wall in left field. The hit went for an RBI double, but the NL West-leading Padres had their three- game winning streak broken and lost for the second time in eight contests. Hairston had two hits and drove in four runs.
Kevin Correia (5-6) gave up seven hits and six runs over five innings, and has just one victory in his last 10 appearances.
Tony Gwynn walked to start the bottom of the sixth inning and David Eckstein broke the no-hit bid with a slow ground single to left field. Chase Headley singled in a run with one out and Hairston belted a three-run homer off the facade of the second deck in left for an 8-4 margin.
The Padres nearly tied it the next inning against Joe Beimel. Adrian Gonzalez singled in a run and Headley legged out an infield hit to put runners at the corners with two outs. Hairston then smashed a pitch from Matt Belisle that nearly got out. After intentionally walking Will Venable, Belisle retired Nick Hundley on a ground ball to keep the 8-6 edge.
Seth Smith homered off Edward Mujica leading off the ninth and Jonathan Herrera singled in a run later in the frame.
Huston Street worked around a lead-off single by Eckstein to start the bottom of the ninth and retired the next three batters.
Gonzalez homered in the first inning. Olivo doubled in two in the third and crushed a homer to the second deck in left field in the fifth for a 6-0 margin. Spilborghs went deep to left in the sixth for the eight-run margin.
Jimenez is 7-3 lifetime against the Padres...Colorado has won five of the last seven meetings...Correia walked a career-high tying six batters...Jimenez now has a career-best eight-game winning streak. Jimenez is the first pitcher to win 14 of his first 15 decisions since Roger Clemens did so in 2001. He is the first pitcher to win 14 of his first 16 starts since Pedro Martinez in 1999 and the first pitcher to go 14-1 or better in his first 16 starts since John Smoltz did so in 1996 (14-1).
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