Greg Maddux is not the kind of guy who kicks over water coolers, punches out dugout walls or trashes locker rooms when things go poorly.
Even if he was, the Atlanta Braves agree, he'd have no reason to do that now. Because there's nothing with his pitching, they say - it's his record that's the problem."He's 5-5, but he's pitching like he should be 8-2," pitching coach Leo Mazzone said. "But it will all turn out OK. We'll take our chances with him."
Maddux fell to the .500 mark Wednesday night when Mark Clark and the New York Mets beat him 3-2. The four-time Cy Young winner does not have a victory in five starts, his longest drought in five seasons.
Coming off an outing in which he wound up with a no-decision despite the Braves' 19-8 loss to Colorado, Maddux did well enough, allowing three runs, two of them earned, on eight hits in seven innings. He lowered his ERA to a nice 3.35, yet once again fell victim to some sloppy defense and a lack of timely hitting.
"Colorado was bad," Maddux said. "Other than that, I don't feel like I have a whole lot to be frustrated about."
"There are only two things I can control - pitch selection and pitches," he said. "The wins, the losses, the ERA, all of it - I look at it, but I don't worry about it. I can't control it."
Not since Maddux went seven straight starts in the middle of 1991, the season before he began his string of four Cy Youngs in a row, has he gone five starts without a victory. He's 0-2 during this drought, even though he's given up more than two earned runs just once in that span.
"I'm not going to say, `It should be this' or `It should be that,"' he said of his record.
Maddux was hurt by two errors, including a key bobble by rookie second baseman Tony Graffanino that led to a run.
Bernard Gilkey hit a pair of RBI singles for the Mets, whom Maddux has beaten more than any team in his career.
Reds 9, Padres 4
Two-run homers in the ninth inning by Eric Davis and Brett Boone powered Cincinnati and handed San Diego its sixth straight loss.
Expos 8, Marlins 0
In Montreal, Jeff Fassero allowed five hits in eight innings and Sherman Obando homered and drove in three runs as the Expos downed Florida.
Rockies 8, Astros 0
Marvin Freeman pitched seven shutout innings and combined with two relievers on Colorado's first shutout at Coors Field. The shutout was the Rockies' first in 103 games in their new stadium and third at home in franchise history.
Phillies 4, Cubs 3
In Philadelphia, Sid Fernandez allowed only two hits in 52/3 innings, and Gregg Jefferies and Todd Zeile hit consecutive home runs as the Phillies ended a six-game losing streak.
American League
Angels 4, Royals 3
Tim Wallach tied the score in the eighth inning with a solo homer off Jeff Montgomery, then homered off Montgomery leading off the 10th to give California its first three-game sweep in Kansas City in five years.
Chuck McElroy (3-0) went 12/3 innings and got his third straight victory in relief. He went two-thirds of an inning Monday and 12/3 innings on Tuesday night.
Troy Percival worked the ninth for his 16th save as the Angels won their fourth straight.
Athletics 9, Indians 6
Brent Gates' three-run double snapped a 5-5 tie in the sixth inning and helped lift visiting Oakland over Cleveland. The Athletics also got two homers from Mark McGwire, his 17th and 18th.
Mariners 5, Twins 3
In Minneapolis, Dan Wilson's two-run, two-out double in the seventh inning broke a 2-2 tie and Seattle rookie Bob Wolcott (5-6) won his fourth game in his last five.
Blue Jays 7, Yankees 4
Carlos Delgado hit a three-run homer and Marty Janzen scattered eight hits in seven innings as the Blue Jays snapped a six-game losing streak in front of 44,238, Toronto's largest crowd of the season.
Orioles 10, Tigers 7
Brady Anderson's tiebreaking double in the ninth inning helped Arthur Rhodes (7-0) remain undefeated with a victory at Detroit. Baltimore, with homers from Bobby Bonilla and Rafael Palmeiro, won its second straight.
Rangers 13, Brewers 6
Mickey Tettleton homered twice and Damon Buford hit his first career grand slam in support of Roger Pavlik (9-1) at The Ballpark at Arlington. The Rangers broke the game open with a six-run fifth inning.
Red Sox 3, White Sox 2
At Chicago, Mike Stanley's sacrifice fly with the bases loaded and one out in the 12th inning scored Jose Canseco to lead Boston.