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Cook tosses shutout as Rockies top Padres

Jul 2, 2008 - 4:14 AM By Brady Delander PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

DENVER (Ticker) -- Aaron Cook took the pressure off during his first career shutout by basically forcing his teammates on the Colorado Rockies to talk to him.

Cook pitched a scoreless complete game as the Rockies handled the San Diego Padres, 4-0, to end an eight-game losing streak on Tuesday night in the fastest nine-inning game in Coors Field history at one hour, 58 minutes.

"When you look up there (at the scoreboard), and it's the seventh inning, and you see all zeroes, you naturally start to think about it," Cook said. "I'm a jokester, so I was getting in the dugout and making guys sit with me and talk to me because I didn't want to get the silent treatment."

It was a welcomed turnaround for the Rockies after the Padres dropped 15 runs on them in the first game of the three-game series.

Cook (11-5) tied the club record for most wins in the first half of the season and is having the best year of his career. He has surpassed his personal best in single-season victories, breezing through San Diego's lineup in just 79 pitches. He threw 10 or fewer pitches in seven of nine innings.

"That was impressive. ... That's as good as I've seen him, and I've seen him (pitch) pretty good," Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said. "I would think he's gotten the attention of the league."

Hurdle, who will manage the National League All-Star team, joked that he is going to make a call and lobby to get Cook on the team.

It was Cook's second complete game of the season, during which he allowed just five hits - all singles.

"Cookie's been our best pitcher all year, and there was no one better to get us out of our little funk," Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki said.

Matt Holliday had two hits with a double and two walks, and Taveras stole his major league-best 38th base of the season. Taveras also scored and drove in a run before leaving with a quadriceps strain.

Josh Banks (2-3) cruised through the first four innings before losing control in the fifth and picked up his third loss in three starts.

"The guy (Banks) was pitching real well," said Taveras, who is listed as day to day. "He left that pitch right there where I could handle it - down and away - and got a base hit. ... But the big deal was Cookie; he pitched great."

The Padres (33-52) now have lost nine of their last 10 and slipped back into last place in the National League West Division.

"(Banks) gave up a couple of walks in the fifth, and walks in this park can haunt you," San Diego manager Bud Black said. "(Cook) was in the strike zone, and we took some good swings. But the life on the ball took some meat off the bat."

Tulowitzki led off the fifth inning with a double to the fence in right-center field, and Cook dropped down a sacrifice bunt to move the runner to third base. Taveras followed with an opposite-field single to plate Tulowitzki for the first run of the night.

Taveras stole second and third, and Todd Helton and Holliday each walked to load the bases. Brad Hawpe hit a slow roller toward first for what looked like a double-play ball, but Khalil Greene threw wide of first with Holliday sliding hard at second, allowing Taveras and Helton to score.

"Holliday made a good, hard slide. It was a good play," Black said.

Hawpe picked up the Rockies' third stolen base of the inning and scored on a line-drive single by Garrett Atkins.