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Thursday, Jul. 13 7:35pm ET
Maddux gets loose, and Mussina gets beat | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Showing absolutely no ill effects from a shoulder injury that forced him to miss the All-Star Game, Greg Maddux returned to form against the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday. Maddux outpitched Mike Mussina and Bobby Bonilla singled in the tiebreaking run in the seventh inning, leading the Atlanta Braves to a 6-3 victory. Maddux (11-3) allowed three runs, eight hits and two walks in seven innings to earn his second consecutive victory after two consecutive defeats. Maddux missed one start and the All-Star Game after being struck in the right shoulder by a ball while shagging flies during batting practice Saturday. "Once the shoulder got loose, it stayed loose," Maddux said. Mussina (6-8) yielded only six hits in his third complete game, struck out eight and retired the side in order six times. But the Braves scored three runs in the fourth, snapped a 3-3 tie in the seventh and added two insurance runs in the ninth. "I thought he was pitching real good," Maddux said of Mussina. "We didn't do anything off him the first time through the lineup. When you got the three runs, you felt fortunate, like that was all you're going to get. We got lucky and added on." John Rocker, greeted by a chorus of boos from the sellout crowd of 47,284, started the ninth, but walked Will Clark on four pitches. Scott Kamieniecki finished for his first save of the season and fourth of his career. Rocker has been bothered by a callous on his pitching hand, but Braves manager Bobby Cox said that was not a factor. "Rock's just off -- eight inches away in the same spot," Cox said. "The callous? That's no problem at all." Andres Galarraga led off the seventh with a single and took second on a groundout before Bonilla grounded a soft single to right. Bonilla, a former Oriole, struck out in his previous two at-bats against Mussina and was batting .229 against right-handed pitching. "He's just so good," Bonilla said of Mussina. "Moose is such a tremendous pitcher and he's facing one of the best the game's ever seen. It was a duel." Reggie Sanders, who entered in the seventh as a pinch-runner for Bonilla, singled in a run in the ninth and scored on a squeeze bunt by Walt Weiss. "Every time they got someone on base, it seemed like I couldn't get anyone out," Mussina said. "It's just the way the game went. They just took advantage of all their opportunities." The Orioles scored in the second when Clark hit a two-out single and Harold Baines followed with a run-scoring double. Atlanta's first nine batters were retired before taking a 3-1 lead in the fourth. Andruw Jones hit a one-out double, Chipper Jones walked and Brian Jordan doubled in a run. Galarraga then drove in a run with a grounder and Wally Joyner followed with a run-scoring single. Baltimore pulled even in the fifth on Albert Belle's RBI single and a run-scoring grounder by B.J. Surhoff, but that was the extent of the damage against Maddux. "It was two very well-pitched games through eight innings," Orioles manager Mike Hargrove said. "I thought Greg threw the ball very well. I thought Mussina was just as good." Game notesBaltimore's Delino DeShields recorded his team-high 22nd stolen base, his first since June 28. ... Atlanta second baseman Quilvio Veras was scratched from the lineup due to illness. He was replaced by Keith Lockhart. ... Baltimore fell to 23-14 at home. ... Before the game the Braves activated left-handed pitcher Mike Remlinger from the disabled list and designated right-hander Dave Stevens for assignment. ... Sanders' 10th steal in the ninth inning enabled him to reach double figures for the eighth consecutive season. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Atlanta Clubhouse Baltimore Clubhouse RECAPS San Diego 2 Seattle 1
Atlanta 6
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