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Wolf near flawless as Padres blank Rockies

Apr 16, 2008 - 6:02 AM By Tim Powers PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

SAN DIEGO (Ticker) -- Randy Wolf's gem helped his new teammates exact a measure of revenge against a familiar foe.

Wolf allowed just one hit over seven scoreless innings and the San Diego Padres used a six-run fifth to take down the Colorado Rockies, 6-0, in the opener of a three-game set on Tuesday.

The 31-year-old Wolf (1-0) did not allow a hit until Brad Hawpe singled with two outs in the seventh. The lefthander yielded little else, retiring the next batter to end the inning and leaving to a standing ovation.

He struck out nine batters and walked four.

"I was aware of it," Wolf said of taking a no-hitter into the seventh. "I knew I probably wasn't going to go nine because I had so many pitches. It was a tight game up until (the fifth), and I thought it was going to go down to the wire, but it's kind of a breath of fresh air when you score six runs like that."

Kevin Cameron followed with two scoreless innings, allowing just a single by Todd Helton to complete the two-hitter and give San Diego its third shutout of the season.

"Wolf had good life on his fastball tonight," Padres manager Bud Black said. "It was against a real good lineup, so that showed me the kind of stuff he had. He felt good, and he was throwing good. The last three innings were as efficient as he was all night."

The contest marked the first meeting between the teams since the one-game playoff for the National League wild card last October. Colorado won that night in 13 innings en route to a World Series appearance, but it was all San Diego in this one.

Brian Giles, Kevin Kouzmanoff and Jim Edmonds all swatted two-run doubles against Colorado starter Ubaldo Jimenez in the fifth, snapping a scoreless tie and building a 6-0 advantage.

San Diego sent 12 batters to the plate in the inning, taking advantage of a throwing error by Jimenez and drawing five walks to give Wolf all the support he needed.

"Obviously, we'd like to put a little more pressure on teams throughout the game, but it was nice to get the first two runs for (Wolf) the way he was throwing the ball," Giles said. "Kouz comes up with a big hit and then Jimmy, so it was a nice inning for us. The way Wolf was throwing, six was enough, especially against a good-hitting team like Colorado."

The two RBI by Giles gave the 37-year-old outfielder 1,000 for his career.

Jimenez (1-2) lasted 4 2/3 innings, allowing six runs - two earned - and six hits with five strikeouts and three walks. The 24-year-old righthander suffered his first loss to the Padres in three career starts.

"I felt good," Jimenez said. "I wasn't focused after (the error). I was trying to get out of the inning, but I did it in a bad way - trying to overthrow. I just tried to throw everything I had, and it was a mistake."

Troy Tulowitzki was the only runner to advance as far as second base for the Rockies, who have lost three of their last four games and been shut out twice in a row.

"We're not where we want to be, where we're going to be, offensively," Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said. "It was a combination of that and Wolf hitting his spots tonight."