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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
ATLANTA (AP) -- Kerry Wood took another step forward in his
comeback. For John Rocker, it was a giant step backward.
|  | | Kerry Wood pitched seven strong innings in the Cubs' 8-1 victory over Atlanta on Wednesday. |
Wood allowed only four hits in seven innings and Chicago added
five runs in the ninth inning off a wild Rocker as the Cubs
defeated the Atlanta Braves 8-1 Wednesday night.
Rocker sprinted in from the bullpen to the cheers of the crowd
of 44,698 in the ninth but left to jeers after throwing 20 balls
and just 10 strikes. He allowed five runs, four walks and a hit
batter, his ERA swelling to 5.85.
"He didn't throw well at all. The game got out of hand,"
Atlanta manager Bobby Cox said. "It all boils down to getting the
ball over the plate."
Rocker politely declined comment when asked to discuss his
outing.
"Right now, he's lost out on the mound," said Cubs manager Don
Baylor, who was the Braves' hitting coach last season when Rocker
was one of the league's top relievers with 38 saves.
"Last year he'd come in with a swagger out of the bullpen along
with control and the stuff to go with it," said Baylor. "But when
you're fighting other elements, too, it's difficult. You've got to
treat this game with reverence because it can hit you between the
forehead. He's finding that out now."
The controversial reliever, who says he will take the subway to
Shea Stadium next week when he returns to New York, retired first
hitter, Augie Ojeda, then walked pinch-hitter Gary Matthews Jr. and
Eric Young on 3-2 pitches and allowed an RBI single to Damon Buford
that made it 4-1.
Sammy Sosa was intentionally walked, and Rocker forced in two
runs by walking Mark Grace and hitting Brant Brown with a pitch.
Rocker was removed, and Jeff Reed hit a two-run single off Don
Wengert.
Pitching five days after his 23rd birthday, Wood (3-4) didn't
allow a runner past first in the opening six innings.
"I just wanted to go out and not have a disaster," said Wood,
who had given up nine runs in 10 innings during his previous two
outings.
He took a shutout into the seventh before Andres Galarraga
reached on Wood's only walk and scored on Brian Jordan's double to
the fence in left-center field.
Wood, the 1998 NL Rookie of the Year, struck out six, throwing
105 pitches. Mixing a fastball in the low to mid-90s with a sharp
breaking ball, he won for the first time since beating San
Francisco 4-1 on May 28.
"It's tough to compare," he said when asked if he's back to
his 1998 form. "My breaking ball is better and my fastball is
close, but I don't think I can throw 97 mph anymore. But if I can
locate and throw 92-93 I know I can get guys out."
"He was locked in," said Baylor. "He went up against a good
team and it was a real good test for him. He didn't have a bunch of
strikeouts, but I was happy with his control. He had a great
breaking ball and was fooling a lot of guys."
Braves starter Tom Glavine (7-4) hasn't won since May 21, going
0-3 with three no-decisions. He lost at Turner Field for the first
time since last July 6 after going 10-0 in 17 home starts during
his streak.
Glavine allowed three runs -- two earned -- and nine hits in
seven-plus innings, leaving after Sosa's leadoff walk in the eighth
and Grace's single.
Jose Nieves put Chicago ahead with an RBI grounder in the
fourth, and Buford and Sosa hit run-scoring singles in the fifth
following a throwing error by shortstop Walt Weiss.
Game
notes
Chipper Jones extended his career-high hitting streak to 19
games. ... Wood had surgery in the spring of 1999 to replace a torn
ligament in his right elbow. ... Sosa needs two hits to reach
1,500.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Chicago Cubs Clubhouse
Atlanta Clubhouse
Rocker says he'll take No. 7 when Braves visit N.Y.
No . 7 riders say Rocker should proceed cautiously
RECAPS
Boston 9
NY Yankees 7
Toronto 6
Detroit 0
Cleveland 8
Chi. White Sox 6
Texas 7
Minnesota 5
Anaheim 3
Kansas City 1
Oakland 10
Baltimore 3
Seattle 8
Tampa Bay 5
Chicago Cubs 8
Atlanta 1
Colorado 6
Cincinnati 4
Florida 5
Milwaukee 4
Pittsburgh 8
Montreal 3
Philadelphia 10
NY Mets 5
Los Angeles 7
Houston 6
San Francisco 4
St. Louis 1
Arizona 11
San Diego 8
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Mark Grace did not have fun facing a wild John Rocker.
wav: 144 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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