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Cook's solid pitching sparks Rockies victory

May 30, 2010 - 4:54 AM DENVER(AP) -- Aaron Cook got all the support he needed from his teammates, both at the plate and in the field.

Cook pitched effectively for 6 1-3 innings, Carlos Gonzalez homered and added a run-saving defensive gem in center field and the Colorado Rockies beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 11-3 Saturday night.

The tone was set in the first inning.

Cook, who couldn't get out of the fifth inning after being staked to a 9-0 lead in his last outing, found himself in a one-out, two-on jam but worked out of it by inducing Matt Kemp to ground into a double play that was turned with nifty fielding from third baseman Ian Stewart. It was the first in a series of key defensive plays.

"I trust my guys every day to pick me up when I make a few mistakes," Cook said. "I give up a leadoff hit and walk a guy, they're ready to make a play as soon as I make a pitch. It's a huge lift and I think it really set the tempo for the rest of the game."

Seth Smith and Miguel Olivo each had three hits with two RBI apiece to help the Rockies reverse a losing trend against Los Angeles, which had won six of its previous seven games in Colorado, including a 5-4 victory in Friday night's series opener.

Cook (2-3) allowed three runs - one earned - on six hits. He walked two and struck out one in his first win in a month.

Dodgers starter Hiroki Kuroda (5-3) had his shortest - and roughest - outing of the season, giving up seven runs (five earned) on 10 hits in four innings. And it was no surprise it came against Colorado. He fell to 0-3 with a 7.57 ERA in five career starts against the Rockies.

The victory was Colorado's sixth in seven games and gave Rockies manager Jim Tracy his 100th victory since getting the job a year ago.

Cook helped himself by hitting a run-scoring single in the third and also benefited from two more breathtaking defensive plays.

With two outs and a runner at second in the third, Gonzalez closed furiously on Manny Ramirez's fly ball to the right-center gap and at the last instant dove to make the shoestring catch. In the fourth, shortstop Troy Tulowitzki made a sideways, leaping catch to snare a liner off the bat of James Loney. Both plays brought a roar from the crowd and an appreciative pounding of his glove by Cook.

"I was just running like crazy trying to get there so I could get to the ball, and I was able to get a really good result," Gonzalez said. "It feels good when the pitcher knows that we have his back and we're going to take care of it when they put the ball in play."

Tracy said, "That was a huge play and I think it's one of the better catches you're going to see this year."

In a sign Kuroda was in for a tough night, the Rockies loaded the bases before he registered an out. He hit the first batter he faced, Gonzalez, with a pitch, Smith singled and Todd Helton walked ahead of Troy Tulowitzki's run-scoring fielder's choice and Brad Hawpe's sacrifice fly.

"He just looked like he didn't have the command that he usually has," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said. "It was frustrating for him and they made some great plays defensively."

Kuroda said through an interpreter that he didn't make the adjustments he needed after a rocky first.

"I haven't been able to make all the pitches that I wanted," he said.

Gonzalez hit a two-out solo shot in the second - his seventh of the season and third in four games - and the Rockies added a pair of unearned runs in the third to go up 5-0.

The Rockies added three more runs in the fifth, getting a two-run single from Smith and a bases-loaded walk by Gonzalez.

The Dodgers trailed 8-0 before scoring on RBI singles in the seventh by Loney, A.J. Ellis and Furcal, who had three hits on the night.

But in the eighth, the Rockies answered with a two-run triple by Olivo and an RBI single by Stewart.

NOTES: Andre Ethier was scheduled to play his second rehab game with Triple-A Albuquerque on Saturday before rejoining the Dodgers, who could activate the outfielder as soon as Monday. Ethier has been on the 15-day disabled list since May 15 with a fractured pinky finger. ... Colorado has won all four of Cook's starts at home. ... Gonzalez has scored eight runs in the last four games. He also has 25 RBI in his last 26 games.