GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: NL: NY METS (28-16) at ATLANTA (27-18)

NL: NY METS at ATLANTA

<div class="pre">NL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NY METS 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 3 7 0
ATLANTA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 1 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: NYM - OLIVER PEREZ, JOE SMITH (8TH), BILLY WAGNER (9TH) AND PAUL LO
DUCA

ATL - CHUCK JAMES, CHAD PARONTO (5TH), PETER MOYLAN
(6TH), OSCAR VILLARREAL (8TH), TYLER YATES (9TH) AND JARROD
SALTALAMACCHIA


WP - OLIVER PEREZ (6-3)
LP - CHUCK JAMES (4-4)
SAVE - BILLY WAGNER (11)

HOME RUNS: NYM - DAVID WRIGHT (8) OFF CHUCK JAMES IN THE 5TH, 0 ON

ATL - NONE


TIME: 2:49 ATT: 30,489

PROBABLES: NYM - TOM GLAVINE (5-1, 3.43)
ATL - JOHN SMOLTZ (6-2, 2.85)</div>

 

NL: NY METS at ATLANTA

<div class="pre">NY METS (3) VS ATLANTA (0) - FINAL

NY METS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Reyes ss 3 1 0 0 2 1 3 .316
S Green rf 3 0 1 0 1 0 3 .317
J Smith p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
b-D Newhan ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .172
B Wagner p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
C Beltran cf 5 0 0 0 0 1 3 .295
D Wright 3b 5 1 1 1 0 1 2 .273
P Lo Duca c 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 .314
C Delgado 1b 4 0 2 0 0 0 1 .216
D Easley 2b 3 0 1 0 0 0 2 .272
C Gomez lf 3 0 0 1 0 1 5 .278
O Perez p 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .333
a-E Chavez ph-rf 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .354

Totals 32 3 7 2 4 6 19

a-walked for O Perez in the 8th; b-struck out looking for J Smith in the
9th.

BATTING: 2B - P Lo Duca (5, C James). HR - D Wright (8, 5th inning off C James
0 on, 1 Out). S - O Perez. SF - C Gomez. RBI - C Gomez (3), D Wright (26).
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - D Easley 1, S Green 2, D Wright 1, J
Reyes 2. Team LOB - 10.

BASERUNNING: SB - J Reyes (26, 3rd base off C James/J Saltalamacchia), S
Green (4, 2nd base off C James/J Saltalamacchia).

FIELDING: DP: 1 (D Easley-C Delgado).


ATLANTA ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
M Prado 2b 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 .111
E Renteria ss 3 0 1 0 1 1 1 .331
C Jones 3b 4 0 1 0 0 1 3 .300
J Francoeur rf 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 .306
M Diaz lf 4 0 0 0 0 0 5 .337
A Jones cf 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 .216
J Saltalamacchia c 4 0 2 0 0 1 1 .320
C Woodward 1b 4 0 0 0 0 3 2 .207
C James p 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .077
C Paronto p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
a-W Harris ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .362
P Moylan p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
b-K Johnson ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .277
O Villarreal p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
T Yates p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Totals 31 0 5 0 2 9 17

a-walked for C Paronto in the 5th; b-struck out looking for P Moylan in the
7th.

BATTING: Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - C Jones 1, M Diaz 3. GIDP -
J Saltalamacchia. Team LOB - 8.

BASERUNNING: SB - E Renteria (3, 2nd base off O Perez/P Lo Duca), W Harris
(5, 2nd base off O Perez/P Lo Duca).

FIELDING: E - M Prado (1, catch).


----------------------------------------------------
NY METS - 001 110 000 -- 3
ATLANTA - 000 000 000 -- 0
----------------------------------------------------

NY METS ip h r er bb so hr era
O Perez (W, 6-3) 7 4 0 0 2 5 0 2.54
J Smith (H, 5) 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 1.37
B Wagner (S, 11) 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 0.90

ATLANTA ip h r er bb so hr era
C James (L, 4-4) 4 2/3 7 3 2 3 2 1 4.13
C Paronto 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 8.03
P Moylan 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.69
O Villarreal 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 4.09
T Yates 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 3.32

WP - O Perez. IBB - J Reyes (by C James). HBP - A Jones (by O Perez); J
Francoeur (by O Perez); P Lo Duca (by O Villarreal); D Easley (by O
Villarreal). Pitches-strikes: O Perez 122-81; J Smith 13-8; B Wagner 19-12; C
James 84-50; C Paronto 1-1; P Moylan 19-10; O Villarreal 23-13; T Yates 11-7.
Ground balls-fly balls: O Perez 7-9; J Smith 1-0; B Wagner 0-1; C James 4-8; C
Paronto 0-1; P Moylan 5-1; O Villarreal 0-1; T Yates 1-0. Batters faced: O
Perez 28; J Smith 3; B Wagner 4; C James 24; C Paronto 1; P Moylan 6; O
Villarreal 6; T Yates 3.

UMPIRES: HP--Ted Barrett. 1B--Mark Carlson. 2B--Larry Young. 3B--Angel
Hernandez.

T--2:49. Att--30,489.
Weather: 81 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 12 mph, left
to right.</div>

 

NL: NY METS at ATLANTA

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
NL
NY METS 3
ATLANTA 0 FINAL</div>

 

Perez dominant as Mets blank Braves

<h3>NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0</h3>ATLANTA (Ticker) -- Too bad Oliver Perez could not start everytime the New York Mets faced the Atlanta Braves.

Perez hurled seven innings of shutout ball to record his thirdvictory against the Braves this season and power New York to a3-0 victory over Atlanta on Wednesday.

The Braves and Mets have faced each other eight times thisseason, with Atlanta winning five. If not for Perez, New York'sfate may have been much worse.

The 25-year-old lefthander had dominated the Braves this season,striking out 15 and allowing just three runs in 13 2/3 inningsin his first two starts against them.

Once again, Perez (6-3) came up huge against the Mets' perennialnemesis to extend their lead over Atlanta in the NationalLeague East Division to 2 1/2 games.

The Mexican southpaw scattered four hits in seven scorelessframes, struck out five and walked two to win his third straightdecision and improve to 4-1 with a 2.31 ERA in five startsagainst Atlanta since joining the Mets last season.

David Wright homered in the fifth for the Mets, who avoidedtheir first three-game losing streak of the season.

Perez threw a season-high 122 pitches - 81 strikes - to dispatchof a righthanded-laden Atlanta lineup that was restinglefthanded regulars Brian McCann, Kelly Johnson and ScottThorman.

Atlanta's best threat against Perez came in the bottom of thethird. Atlanta starter Chuck James (4-4) led off the frame bysingling to left to collect his first hit in 13 at-bats thisseason and advanced to second on a wild pitch.

Right fielder Shawn Green made a nice diving catch on a foul outby Martin Prado to record the first out of the frame, but Jamestagged and advanced to third.

Perez walked Edgar Renteria before inducing Chipper Jones toline out to first, and loaded the bases after hitting JeffFrancoeur with a pitch. But the lefthander induced Matt Diaz tofly out to right to end the threat.

Rookie Joe Smith pitched a scoreless eighth and Billy Wagnerpitched around a two-out base hit to Jarrod Saltalamacchia inthe ninth to complete the shutout and pick up his 11th save.

New York took a 1-0 lead thanks to an unearned run in the third.

James issued a one-out free pass to Jose Reyes, who advanced tosecond on Green's single and scored on Prado's fielding error,when the rookie failed to catch a throw by catcherSaltalamacchia on a double steal.

New York loaded the bases in with no outs in the fourth withsuccessive singles by Paul Lo Duca, Carlos Delgado and DamionEasley, but only could plate one run on a sacrifice fly by ChrisGomez.

James allowed three runs - two earned - and seven hits, walkedthree and struck out two in 4 2/3 innings. The 25-year oldsouthpaw has pitched into the seventh inning in just one of his10 starts this season.

 

NL: NY METS at ATLANTA

<div class="pre">NY METS (3) VS ATLANTA (0) - FINAL

NY METS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Reyes ss 3 1 0 0 2 1 3 .316
S Green rf 3 0 1 0 1 0 3 .317
J Smith p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
b-D Newhan ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .172
B Wagner p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
C Beltran cf 5 0 0 0 0 1 3 .295
D Wright 3b 5 1 1 1 0 1 2 .273
P Lo Duca c 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 .314
C Delgado 1b 4 0 2 0 0 0 1 .216
D Easley 2b 3 0 1 0 0 0 2 .272
C Gomez lf 3 0 0 1 0 1 5 .278
O Perez p 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .333
a-E Chavez ph-rf 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .354

Totals 32 3 7 2 4 6 19

a-walked for O Perez in the 8th; b-struck out looking for J Smith in the
9th.

BATTING: 2B - P Lo Duca (5, C James). HR - D Wright (8, 5th inning off C James
0 on, 1 Out). S - O Perez. SF - C Gomez. RBI - C Gomez (3), D Wright (26).
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - D Easley 1, S Green 2, D Wright 1, J
Reyes 2. Team LOB - 10.

BASERUNNING: SB - J Reyes (26, 3rd base off C James/J Saltalamacchia), S
Green (4, 2nd base off C James/J Saltalamacchia).

FIELDING: DP: 1 (D Easley-C Delgado).


ATLANTA ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
M Prado 2b 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 .111
E Renteria ss 3 0 1 0 1 1 1 .331
C Jones 3b 4 0 1 0 0 1 3 .300
J Francoeur rf 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 .306
M Diaz lf 4 0 0 0 0 0 5 .337
A Jones cf 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 .216
J Saltalamacchia c 4 0 2 0 0 1 1 .320
C Woodward 1b 4 0 0 0 0 3 2 .207
C James p 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .077
C Paronto p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
a-W Harris ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .362
P Moylan p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
b-K Johnson ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .277
O Villarreal p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
T Yates p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Totals 31 0 5 0 2 9 17

a-walked for C Paronto in the 5th; b-struck out looking for P Moylan in the
7th.

BATTING: Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - C Jones 1, M Diaz 3. GIDP -
J Saltalamacchia. Team LOB - 8.

BASERUNNING: SB - E Renteria (3, 2nd base off O Perez/P Lo Duca), W Harris
(5, 2nd base off O Perez/P Lo Duca).

FIELDING: E - M Prado (1, catch).


----------------------------------------------------
NY METS - 001 110 000 -- 3
ATLANTA - 000 000 000 -- 0
----------------------------------------------------

NY METS ip h r er bb so hr era
O Perez (W, 6-3) 7 4 0 0 2 5 0 2.54
J Smith (H, 5) 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 1.37
B Wagner (S, 11) 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 0.90

ATLANTA ip h r er bb so hr era
C James (L, 4-4) 4 2/3 7 3 2 3 2 1 4.13
C Paronto 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 8.03
P Moylan 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.69
O Villarreal 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 4.09
T Yates 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 3.32

WP - O Perez. IBB - J Reyes (by C James). HBP - A Jones (by O Perez); J
Francoeur (by O Perez); P Lo Duca (by O Villarreal); D Easley (by O
Villarreal). Pitches-strikes: O Perez 122-81; J Smith 13-8; B Wagner 19-12; C
James 84-50; C Paronto 1-1; P Moylan 19-10; O Villarreal 23-13; T Yates 11-7.
Ground balls-fly balls: O Perez 7-9; J Smith 1-0; B Wagner 0-1; C James 4-8; C
Paronto 0-1; P Moylan 5-1; O Villarreal 0-1; T Yates 1-0. Batters faced: O
Perez 28; J Smith 3; B Wagner 4; C James 24; C Paronto 1; P Moylan 6; O
Villarreal 6; T Yates 3.

UMPIRES: HP--Ted Barrett. 1B--Mark Carlson. 2B--Larry Young. 3B--Angel
Hernandez.

T--2:49. Att--30,489.
Weather: 81 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 12 mph, left
to right.</div>

 

NL: NY METS at ATLANTA

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NY METS (3) AT ATLANTA (0) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NY METS 3RD: O Perez struck out looking. J Reyes walked. S Green singled
to center, J Reyes to second. J Reyes stole third, S Green stole second.
J Reyes scored, S Green safe at third on error by second baseman M Prado.
C Beltran struck out swinging. D Wright flied out to center. (1 Run, 1 Hit,
1 Error) NY METS 1, ATLANTA 0.

NY METS 4TH: P Lo Duca singled to right. C Delgado singled to left,
P Lo Duca to second. D Easley singled to left, P Lo Duca to third, C Delgado to
second. C Gomez hit sacrifice fly to center, P Lo Duca scored. O Perez
sacrificed to third, C Delgado to third, D Easley to second. J Reyes
intentionally walked. S Green grounded out to first. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
NY METS 2, ATLANTA 0.

NY METS 5TH: C Beltran fouled out to catcher. D Wright homered to left.
P Lo Duca doubled to left. C Delgado grounded out to first, P Lo Duca to third.
C Paronto relieved C James. D Easley flied out to center. (1 Run, 2 Hits,
0 Errors) NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0.</div>

 

NL: NY METS at ATLANTA

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NY METS (3) AT ATLANTA (0) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ny Mets Starting Lineups -- J Reyes SS, S Green RF, C Beltran CF, D Wright 3B,
P Lo Duca C, C Delgado 1B, D Easley 2B, C Gomez LF, O Perez LHP.

Atlanta Starting Lineups -- M Prado 2B, E Renteria SS, C Jones 3B, J Francoeur RF,
M Diaz LF, A Jones CF, J Saltalamacchia C, C Woodward 1B, C James LHP.

Umpires -- Ted Barrett (HP), Mark Carlson (1B), Larry Young (2B), Angel Hernandez (3B).

Gametime Weather: 81 degrees, Partly Cloudy, wind left to right at 12 mph.


NY METS 1ST: J Reyes flied out to left. S Green walked. C Beltran flied
out to center. D Wright popped out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
NY METS 0, ATLANTA 0.

ATLANTA 1ST: M Prado popped out to third. E Renteria singled to right.
C Jones singled to left, E Renteria to second. J Francoeur flied out to left.
M Diaz grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 0, ATLANTA 0.

NY METS 2ND: P Lo Duca flied out to left. C Delgado singled to left
center. D Easley flied out to center. C Gomez grounded into fielder's choice
to shortstop, C Delgado out at second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 0,
ATLANTA 0.

ATLANTA 2ND: A Jones hit by pitch. J Saltalamacchia grounded into double
play, second to first, A Jones out at second. C Woodward flied out to center.
(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 0, ATLANTA 0.

NY METS 3RD: O Perez struck out looking. J Reyes walked. S Green singled
to center, J Reyes to second. J Reyes stole third, S Green stole second.
J Reyes scored, S Green safe at third on error by second baseman M Prado.
C Beltran struck out swinging. D Wright flied out to center. (1 Run, 1 Hit,
1 Error) NY METS 1, ATLANTA 0.

ATLANTA 3RD: C James singled to left. C James to second on wild pitch by
O Perez. M Prado fouled out to right, C James to third. E Renteria walked.
E Renteria stole second. C Jones lined out to first. J Francoeur hit by pitch.
M Diaz flied out to right. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 1, ATLANTA 0.

NY METS 4TH: P Lo Duca singled to right. C Delgado singled to left,
P Lo Duca to second. D Easley singled to left, P Lo Duca to third, C Delgado
to second. C Gomez hit sacrifice fly to center, P Lo Duca scored. O Perez
sacrificed to third, C Delgado to third, D Easley to second. J Reyes
intentionally walked. S Green grounded out to first. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
NY METS 2, ATLANTA 0.

ATLANTA 4TH: A Jones struck out swinging. J Saltalamacchia struck out
swinging. C Woodward struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 2,
ATLANTA 0.

NY METS 5TH: C Beltran fouled out to catcher. D Wright homered to left.
P Lo Duca doubled to left. C Delgado grounded out to first, P Lo Duca to third.
C Paronto relieved C James. D Easley flied out to center. (1 Run, 2 Hits,
0 Errors) NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0.

ATLANTA 5TH: W Harris hit for C Paronto. W Harris walked. M Prado fouled
out to first. W Harris stole second. E Renteria grounded out to third.
C Jones grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0.

NY METS 6TH: P Moylan relieved C Paronto. C Gomez grounded out to
shortstop. O Perez grounded out to shortstop. J Reyes bunt grounded out to
pitcher. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0.

ATLANTA 6TH: J Francoeur grounded out to third. M Diaz grounded out to
second. A Jones flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 3,
ATLANTA 0.

NY METS 7TH: S Green grounded out to second. C Beltran grounded out to
first. D Wright lined out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 3,
ATLANTA 0.

ATLANTA 7TH: J Saltalamacchia singled to center. C Woodward struck out
looking. K Johnson hit for P Moylan. K Johnson struck out looking. M Prado
fouled out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0.

NY METS 8TH: O Villarreal relieved P Moylan. P Lo Duca hit by pitch.
C Delgado lined out to shortstop. D Easley hit by pitch, P Lo Duca to second.
C Gomez struck out looking. E Chavez hit for O Perez. E Chavez walked, P Lo Duca
to third, D Easley to second. J Reyes struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0.

ATLANTA 8TH: J Smith relieved O Perez. E Chavez in right field. E Renteria
struck out swinging. C Jones struck out swinging. J Francoeur grounded out to
second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0.

NY METS 9TH: T Yates relieved O Villarreal. D Newhan hit for J Smith.
D Newhan struck out looking. C Beltran grounded out to second. D Wright struck
out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0.

ATLANTA 9TH: B Wagner relieved J Smith. M Diaz flied out to right. A Jones
struck out looking. J Saltalamacchia singled to left. C Woodward struck out
looking. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0.</div>

 

Perez dominant as Mets blank Braves

<h3>NY METS 3, ATLANTA 0</h3>ATLANTA (Ticker) -- Too bad Oliver Perez could not start everytime the New York Mets faced the Atlanta Braves.

Perez pitched seven scoreless innings to record his third winagainst Atlanta this season and power the Mets to a 3-0 victoryWednesday.

The teams have faced each other eight times this season, withAtlanta winning five. If not for Perez, New York's fate mayhave been much worse.

"I guess it's a little odd (that Perez has all three wins),"Mets catcher Paul Lo Duca said. "We felt this was a big gamefor us. You don't want to go into the series facing John Smoltz(on Thursday) down 0-2. This was a good game to win."

The 25-year-old lefthander had dominated the Braves this season,striking out 15 and allowing just three runs in 13 2/3 inningsin his first two starts against them.

On Wednesday, Perez (6-3) again came up huge against the Mets'perennial nemesis to extend their lead over Atlanta in theNational League East Division to 2 1/2 games.

"We're battling with the Braves to be first in the division,"Perez said. "You just have to keep playing. I'm trying torelax and not think about every pitch. I was feeling good latein the game."

The Mexican southpaw scattered four hits in seven scorelessframes, struck out five and walked two to win his third straightdecision and improve to 4-1 with a 2.31 ERA in five startsagainst Atlanta since joining the Mets last season.

David Wright homered in the fifth for the Mets, who avoidedtheir first three-game losing streak of the season.

"I feel comfortable out there," Wright said. "I faced (Atlantastarter Chuck) James a few times now. You have to pick if yousit on his fastball or changeup. I went up there andconcentrated on one pitch."

Perez threw a season-high 122 pitches - 81 strikes - to dispatchof a righthanded-laden Atlanta lineup that was restinglefthanded regulars Brian McCann, Kelly Johnson and ScottThorman. He retired 13 of the last 15 batters he faced en routeto winning three straight decisions for the first time in hiscareer.

"Too much Perez tonight," Braves manager Bobby Cox said. "Itdoesn't surprise me that he's beaten us three times. He's thatgood. I think he's one of the toughest guys we've seen."

Atlanta's best threat against Perez came in the bottom of thethird. James (4-4) led off the frame by singling to left tocollect his first hit in 13 at-bats this season and advanced tosecond on a wild pitch.

Right fielder Shawn Green made a nice diving catch on a fouloutby Martin Prado to record the first out of the frame, but Jamestagged and advanced to third.

Perez walked Edgar Renteria before inducing Chipper Jones toline out to first, and loaded the bases after hitting JeffFrancoeur with a pitch. But the lefthander induced Matt Diaz tofly out to right to end the threat.

"Perez bears down with runners in scoring position and makespitches when he has to," Lo Duca said. "He gets a lot of swingsand misses too. He can strike out a lot of guys; that's key."

Rookie Joe Smith worked a scoreless eighth and Billy Wagnerpitched around a two-out base hit to Jarrod Saltalamacchia inthe ninth to complete the shutout and pick up his 11th save.

New York took a 1-0 lead thanks to an unearned run in the third.

James issued a one-out free pass to Jose Reyes, who advanced tosecond on Green's single and scored on Prado's fielding error,when the rookie failed to catch a throw by catcherSaltalamacchia on a double steal.

New York loaded the bases with no outs in the fourth withsuccessive singles by Lo Duca, Carlos Delgado and Damion Easley,but only could plate one run on a sacrifice fly by Chris Gomez.

James allowed three runs - two earned - and seven hits, walkedthree and struck out two in 4 2/3 innings. The 25-year-oldsouthpaw has pitched into the seventh inning in just one of his10 starts this season.

"It's kind of the same old story," James said. "I can't getinto a groove. I feel like every time I go out there, I'mtrying to work on throwing strikes. I couldn't get my fastballover for strikes. I had to throw more changeups. Once youthrow too many changeups, guys are sitting on it."

Saltalamacchia had two hits for the Braves, who were shut outfor the third time this season.