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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
NEW YORK (AP) -- Back at Shea Stadium, John Rocker was in total
control -- of his mouth and his pitches.
|  | | John Rocker pitched a perfect eighth inning Thursday night in his much-hyped return to Shea Stadium. |
Surrounded by police everywhere he went and booed for everything
he did, Rocker ran in from the bullpen and pitched a perfect eighth
inning Thursday night as the Atlanta Braves beat New York 6-4,
ending the Mets' seven-game winning streak.
Taunted and called "stupid" by Rocker last year, Mets fans had
been waiting for this moment long before opening day. Turns out,
they saw more of the Braves reliever than they wanted.
"I've got to give him some kudos for staying in control of the
situation," Braves third baseman Chipper Jones said. "From the
very first pitch, he threw a strike. That's been his struggle this
year -- not being able to get ahead."
Rocker declined to comment after the game.
About 10 minutes before the first pitch, a videotape of Rocker's
pregame statement to the media was shown on the 26-foot-high
scoreboard. He again apologized for his bigoted remarks about New
York's diverse population that got him a two-week suspension,
adding, "I am not the evil person that has been portrayed."
On the mound, though, he was nasty.
As Rocker jogged in to replace Jason Marquis to start the
eighth, a few objects -- including a ball -- were thrown from the
stands. With an estimated 700 police personnel packed all over the
park, the crowd of 46,998 jeered and held up signs as Rocker warmed up.
Jones and teammates Andres Galarraga and Quilvio Veras stayed in
the dugout as Rocker jogged in. For safety, probably.
"We were kind of observing from afar," Jones said. "Just give
the fans a chance to throw what they want and yell what they want.
"We expected the worst. We expected 50,000 people to barge the
field when he came out of the bullpen door," Jones said. "They
were very professional."
Rocker also was booed when he tied his shoelaces and asked for a
change of balls. The heckling did not unnerve him, however.
Rocker struck out Robin Ventura and retired Todd Zeile and Jay
Payton on grounders. He threw 18 pitches.
"John came in, he was very poised," Payton said. "He threw
great, he threw hard. He did a good job calming down and just
pitching."
Walking to the Braves dugout -- police were on top, in front and
standing inside -- Rocker looked at the crowd with a slight smirk
but did not mock the fans as he did during last October's NL
championship series.
Braves teammates greeted Rocker with high-fives, and he was
finished.
"He's an excitable guy. He was throwing about 96 miles an
hour," Mets manager Bobby Valentine said. "He wasn't too
distracted."
Up until his appearance, Rocker had a relatively easy night. The
police were a bit more busy -- they issued 63 summonses for open
containers and made two arrests, one for trespassing and the other
for disorderly conduct.
New Yorkers did not get to watch Rocker ride the No. 7 subway
train to Shea. After an afternoon meeting at the players' union, he
rode an unmarked police van to the park and was the last Braves
player to arrive, escorted in through the shielded-off picnic area.
Rocker threw a couple of balls into the stands, shook hands and
chatted with fans before the game. Once it began, he wandered under
cover to the bullpen in the fourth inning and even signed a few
autographs for his guards.
Rocker sat beneath on awning especially erected to protect him.
There were plenty of other precautions -- beer sales were limited
and cut off early, surveillance cameras were installed to watch the
fans.
Galarraga homered, tripled and drove in four runs as Atlanta won
the opener of a four-game series for the NL East lead. The teams
met for the first time since the NL championship series, which the
Braves won in six tense games.
Mike Piazza hit a two-run single, giving him an RBI in a Mets
record 12 straight games. He became the first NL player to
accomplish that feat since Rip Collins in 1935 for St. Louis.
Piazza also singled to start a two-run sixth that closed New
York to 6-4. Earlier, the All-Star catcher made a rare mental
mistake, losing track of how many outs there were with two runners
on base.
Winner John Burkett (6-3) started in place of Greg Maddux, who
felt ill after arriving at the ballpark.
After Rocker worked the eighth, Kerry Ligtenberg pitched a
perfect ninth for his sixth save.
Galarraga hit a sinking liner under center fielder Payton's
glove for an RBI triple in the first. Galarraga launched a
three-run homer, his 19th, for a 4-0 lead in the third.
Two batters before he served up Galarraga's homer, Mets
right-handed starter Rick Reed (4-2) sustained a fractured left
wrist when hit by Andruw Jones' line-drive single. Reed will be
examined further on Friday.
Brian Jordan hit an RBI single in the Braves fifth, right after
Piazza's mistake. Piazza walked away from the plate holding the
ball after Galarraga struck out, thinking it was the third out, and
Jones snuck from second base to third. Veras singled home a run in the sixth for a 6-2 lead.
Game notes
At 13-14 in June, the Braves need to win Friday night to
avoid their first losing month since September 1996. ... Kansas
City's Mike Sweeney had an RBI in 13 straight games last season.
... Maddux will start Saturday. ... Reed has won only once in his
last 10 starts.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Atlanta Clubhouse
NY Mets Clubhouse
Klapisch: Rocker, Braves come through in one piece
Safely back at Shea (sans train), Rocker pitches perfect eighth
Mets' right-hander Reed breaks left wrist
Text of Rocker's pregame statement
Riding the unlucky No. 7
RECAPS
Toronto 12
Tampa Bay 3
Minnesota 10
Chi. White Sox 1
Texas 3
Oakland 1
Seattle 7
Anaheim 2
Boston 12
Baltimore 4
NY Yankees 8
Detroit 0
Kansas City 6
Cleveland 1
St. Louis 12
Cincinnati 3
Milwaukee 8
Philadelphia 6
Colorado 11
San Francisco 4
Pittsburgh 5
Chicago Cubs 4
Atlanta 6
NY Mets 4
San Diego 5
Los Angeles 4
Arizona 7
Houston 1
AUDIO/VIDEO
 It was a wonderful night for baseball and Braves President Stan Kasten.
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ESPN's Peter Gammons gives his post-Rocker report from Shea Stadium.
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John Rocker gives a statement before the game.
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 ESPN's Peter Gammons reports on his conversation with Rocker after the game.
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Mets skipper Bobby Valentine felt the excitement is good for baseball.
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Chipper Jones stresses Rockers importance to the Braves.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Pitching coach Leo Mazzone was pleased with Rockers pitching performance.
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Pitcher John Burkett thought Rocker did an outstanding job.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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