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Sunday, Aug. 20 2:10pm ET
Bottenfield, Phils blank Cardinals | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Kent Bottenfield looked like the 18-game winner the St. Louis Cardinals traded to get Jim Edmonds instead of the struggling pitcher he's been since leaving town. Facing his former team for the first time, Bottenfield threw a five-hitter for his first career shutout in the Philadelphia Phillies 6-0 victory Sunday. "I'd like to say it was a lot of fun," Bottenfield said. "It's a lot of fun now. It was pretty stressful from the time I stepped on the field until now." Bottenfield (1-0), traded to Anaheim in the Jim Edmonds deal in spring training, struck out five and walked four as the Phillies snapped their season-worst six-game losing streak. He won for the first time in four starts since being traded from Anaheim to Philadelphia. Bottenfield's only other complete game came Aug. 10, 1993, against Los Angeles. His last shutout came with Triple-A Toledo in 1995, although Bottenfield joked that it was in high school. "You'll take one anytime in this league," Bottenfield said. "But it was nice to know I could overcome emotion and put it aside finally and just pitch my game. "I think the outcome was proof that I did a pretty decent job of that." His former manager didn't hold back the compliments. "We saw him win 18 games, so he pitched like that for us, too," Tony La Russa said. "We knew what we were up against." Bottenfield, 18-7 for the Cardinals last year, was 7-8 with a 5.71 ERA with Anaheim. The Phillies were outscored 47-26 during their losing streak, the team's longest since they dropped seven in a row from July 30-Aug. 5, 1998. They're 8-23 against the first-place teams in the NL and finished 2-7 against the Central Division-leading Cardinals. They're 7-17 since former ace Curt Schilling was traded to Arizona. "We haven't seen anything like that since Schilling left," catcher Mike Lieberthal said. "That's the first complete game I've seen in a while." Pat Burrell and Lieberthal had two-run doubles in the first and second and Bobby Abreu, who reached base his first four trips, had a two-run single in the fifth. Burrell's double came with the bases loaded, making him 7-for-8 in that situation with three homers and 19 RBIs. Marlon Anderson, who had been 4-for-22 for his career against the Cardinals, was 3-for-3 with a triple and double and two walks. Rookie Britt Reames, who replaced the injured Andy Benes in the rotation, threw 100 pitches in four innings for the Cardinals in his major league debut. Reames (0-1) allowed four runs, four hits and six walks with five strikeouts. "I felt a lot more comfortable in the third and fourth innings than I did in the first couple of innings," said Reames, who threw 38 pitches in the first inning. "You've got to learn from your mistakes and come back the next time and be better." Benes, on the disabled list with cartilage damage in his right knee, missed the first turn by a Cardinals starter all season. La Russa, noting that Reames settled down, said he'd get at least one more start. Reames walked three and allowed two hits in the first inning. Second baseman Fernando Vina's error, his third in 117 games dating to last year, helped the Phillies score two more in the second to make it 4-0. Cardinals pitchers combined for 10 walks, two intentional. Game notesAbreu, who batted leadoff for the first time this season, singled twice and walked twice and stole two bases. ... The Phillies are only 17-36 against teams with a record of .500 or better. ... Vina is 19-for-51 (.373) during a 12-game hitting streak. ... Scott Rolen walked and scored in the first, but was 0-for-5 to complete an 0-for-12 series. ... The Cardinals have been shut out five times. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Philadelphia Clubhouse St. Louis Clubhouse RECAPS Cleveland 12 Seattle 4
Philadelphia 6
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