NEW YORK -- True to his profession, Steve Trachsel claims he wasn't thinking about the no-hitter or the perfect game.
"There's no use saying what could have been, it didn't happen," Trachsel said.
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| Steve Trachsel throws his third career one-hitter, helping the Mets win their sixth straight game.(AP) |
"Based on the balls that were hit, I was surprised that there was only one hit given up," he said. "They hit a lot of balls hard right at guys. It wasn't like I was fooling them. They hit a lot of at-'em balls."
New York won its sixth straight and completed a sweep of the four-game series.
Trachsel (12-7) retired the first 17 batters before Tsao lined a ball over center fielder Timo Perez's head for a two-out double. Perez was playing shallow against Tsao, who was 0-for-8 in his career before the hit.
Todd Helton, who came in to the game hitting .357, was hitless in three at bats against Trachsel.
"He got ahead," he said, "and he didn't make any mistakes."
The only other baserunner against Trachsel came in the ninth when Greg Norton reached on an error by first baseman Jason Phillips. The play was originally ruled a hit but changed to an error after the game.
Trachsel, who also pitched a one-hitter at Anaheim on June 15, needed only 103 pitches in his second complete game and shutout in 26 starts this season. He struck out three.
Mike Piazza and Phillips hit two-run homers off Tsao (2-1) for the last-place Mets. Jose Reyes singled twice to extend his hitting streak to 17 games.
Colorado has lost five in a row and eight of nine.
Trachsel had as many hits as the Rockies, including one in a four-run sixth inning that broke the game open. Trachsel singled with a runner on first and two outs. Roger Cedeno followed with an RBI single that made it 5-0 and knocked out Tsao.
Adam Bernero relieved and walked Reyes on four pitches, loading the bases. Piazza then grounded to third but a bad throw by Garrett Atkins allowed two runs to score.
Cliff Floyd, playing his final game this season for the Mets before he undergoes surgery on his right Achilles' tendon at the end of this month, added an RBI single in the inning.
Tsao allowed seven runs, 10 hits and three walks in 5 2/3 innings.
Piazza hit his ninth homer of the season after a one-out single by Reyes in the first inning to give the Mets the lead. Phillips hit his 10th with two outs in the third after Reyes led off the inning with a single.
Notes
- Trachsel's other one-hitter came on May 13, 1996, for the Chicago Cubs against the Houston Astros.
- Tsao, the first Taiwanese pitcher in the major leagues, attracted a sizable crowd of several hundred fans with Taiwanese flags and signs lettered in Chinese characters.
- Floyd walked in the first inning, putting him on base for the 15th time in 17 plate appearances.
AP NEWS
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