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Holliday, Cook key Rockies' win over Padres

Jul 25, 2007 - 11:06 PM DENVER (Ticker) -- The Colorado Rockies have found the key to winning at Coors Field.

Matt Holliday had a home run and scored four runs, Ryan Spilborghs hit a go-ahead solo home run and starter Aaron Cook took care of the rest as the Rockies rolled past the San Diego Padres, 10-2, on Wednesday.

Holliday also tallied the eighth four-hit game of his career and finished a triple shy of the cycle.

The Rockies won their 15th consecutive game at Coors Field when scoring at least five runs. Overall this season, the team is 23-3 at home when plating five or more runs.

After a rocky start, Cook (7-6) tossed the sixth complete game of his career, allowing two runs and seven hits. The 28-year-old righthander did not walk a batter and struck out two to improve to 5-0 against the Padres at Coors Field.

"I just went out there and kept throwing strikes and they kept swinging and putting the ball in play," Cook said. "The guys made great defensive plays behind me. I only struck out two guys, so it's not like I was out there doing it by myself. It's a whole team effort."

San Diego took a one-run lead in the first after a leadoff single by Brian Giles, a double by Michael Barrett and an RBI single from Adrian Gonzalez.

However, Cook limited the damage by getting Khalil Greene to ground into a 6-4-3 double play, which plated Barrett from third, before getting Russell Branyan to fly out to end the inning.

"I felt like they didn't hit the ball hard on the three hits they got in the first," Cook said. "I just needed to go back out there and keep throwing strikes."

Cook scattered four hits in the subsequent eight innings and received more than enough run support. He threw only 74 pitches, the fewest by any major league pitcher in a nine-inning complete game since Minnesota's Carlos Silva had 74 on May 20, 2005 vs. Milwaukee.

"I don't think I've ever seen a pitcher throw seven frames of single-digit pitches," Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said. "Seventy-four pitches on the day, I've never seen that. He was filthy."

Spilborghs drove in three runs in the game, highlighted by his seventh home run of the season in the fifth inning which broke a 2-2 tie. Garrett Atkins added three hits and also finished with three RBI for the Rockies, who blew the game open with seven runs after the fifth inning, including a four-run sixth.

San Diego starter Justin Germano (6-5) was pinned with the loss after allowing six runs, seven hits and one walk while striking out one in five-plus innings.

Holliday hit his 18th home run of the season in the bottom of the first inning and, after a reaching on a ground-rule double in the fourth, scored the tying run on Atkins' two-out single.

"We talked about hitting is contagious," Hurdle said. "It just seems to loosen people up. Three, five and seven in the lineup showed up big today for us."

After Spilborghs' shot in the fifth, Colorado pulled away in the sixth.

"Cook just kept getting better and we couldn't get anything done," Padres manager Bud Black said. "The Cook-Holliday combination was really good today. When a guy is on, he is on. Throw all the history out the window. He had it working today."

Holliday ignited the outburst with an RBI double. Atkins added a two-run single later in the frame and moved to third when Branyan, the left fielder, misplayed the ball. Atkins scored on sacrifice fly by Spilborghs.

"The Dodgers are in first place so tomorrow is the start of an important series," Holliday said. "We have our work cut out for us. We are going to need Cook to pitch like that to have a chance at the wild card or winning the West."