The veteran southpaw helped his own cause with a RBI double. From AP-
SAN FRANCISCO - Mike Hampton earned his first victory in nearly three years and hit an RBI double, leading the Atlanta Braves past the San Francisco Giants 11-4 on Tuesday night. The 35-year-old Hampton had to feel great about this outing: He hadn't won since Aug. 14, 2005, for the Braves against Arizona -- 1,087 days earlier. And this was just his third start of 2008 after he returned July 26 following a nearly three-year absence in which the two-time All-Star underwent two major surgeries on his left elbow.Most ML pitchers will win when their team gives them eleven runs.This season, he was sidelined by both a strained chest muscle and an injured groin.
Hampton (1-0) allowed four hits and two runs in seven innings and improved to 14-4 in 25 career appearances against the Giants with his first win over them since May 11, 2003, which also was his last start versus San Francisco. He lowered his ERA from 10.00 to 6.75.
Hampton was a good MLB pitcher but his career problems date back to when signed with the Colorado Rockies after the 2000 season. After leaving Colorado, he had one good year in Atlanta, and one not so good. At 36 years of age, I don't expect Hampton to make a comeback even to the 03-04 level of his career.
Mike Hampton has always been a good hitting pitcher. He has a lifetime .243 BA and 15 career homeruns. In my Startournaments playing days, I frequently used Hampton as a pinch hitter.
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Atlanta Braves, MLB, San Francisco Giants
Comments (1)
Better headline: "Holy cow!... (Below threshold)1. Posted by Peter F. | August 6, 2008 3:23 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Better headline: "Holy cow! Hampton Actually Plays In a Real Baseball Game!"
It's too late now, but he should've gone the Rick Ankiel route and switch to being a hitter.
1. Posted by Peter F. | August 6, 2008 3:23 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on August 6, 2008 15:23