Anderson beats the hook, Rockies for D-Backs' 6th straight win

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Anderson beats the hook, Rockies for D-Backs' 6th straight win

PHOENIX (September 28, 1999 2:39 a.m. EDT http://www.sportserver.com) -

Brian Anderson had no doubt his night had ended when Arizona manager Buck Showalter jogged onto the field in the ninth inning Monday night.

Instead, Showalter allowed Anderson to go the distance for his fifth career complete game as the Diamondbacks beat the Colorado Rockies 10-3 for their sixth straight win.

Anderson was so sure he was coming out that he let his mind wander to an old trick he always wanted to try, bouncing the ball off the rubber to see if it would bounce straight up.

"I yelled and bounced the ball, then Buck told me he wasn't taking me out," said Anderson, who has recorded both of his complete games this season in his last four starts. "I'm glad the ball stayed in the air so I didn't look like a complete idiot. He told me to get this guy so the fans wouldn't boo when he had to come back out there."

Anderson (7-2) mixed in four strikeouts with the nine hits and two walks he allowed and he helped his own cause with a second-inning sacrifice fly. Only two runners reached second after the fifth inning.

"He was outstanding," Showalter said. "He gave up the three runs and then he was in command."

The NL West champion Diamondbacks won for the eighth time in nine games and for the 17th time in their last 21. Arizona is 42-15 since regaining first place on July 24.

Vinny Castilla hit his 32nd homer for the Rockies.

"They showed tonight why they're going to the playoffs and we're going home," Colorado manager Jim Leyland said. "We gave them several extra outs and that hurt us. We're not making plays when we need to."

The Diamondbacks scored in each of the first three innings against Brian Bohanon (12-12), taking the lead for good in the third.

Hanley Frias led off with an infield single and went to third on Greg Colbrunn's single. Bernard Gilkey followed with a double into the left-field corner, scoring Frias and Colbrunn for a 4-2 lead. Colorado pulled within 4-3 in the fifth as Ben Petrick singled and scored on Terry Shumpert's single.

The Diamondbacks extended the lead with four runs in the fifth. Colbrunn led off with a triple to center, Jay Bell walked and Gilkey followed with a slow roller to first. Angel Echevarria fielded the ball cleanly as Colbrunn scored to make it 5-3, but Bohanon didn't cover the bag and both runners were safe on a play scored as a hit. Ernie Young walked to load the bases and Rod Barajas hit a bloop single to center, his first career hit, scoring Bell for a 6-3 lead. Andy Fox had a run-scoring groundout and Turner Ward added an RBI single.

"I was not a pitcher tonight," Bohanon said. "I was a thrower. You can't do that up here. I just lost that game. I didn't keep my emotions under control."

Frias walked in the first, Colbrunn doubled and Bell had an RBI grounder. Castilla homered into the pool area in right field in the second after a double by Dante Bichette.

Ward had a two-run homer off Dave Wainhouse in the eighth. "I just want to have some good plate appearances and hopefully be part of something that can be pretty special," Ward said.

Anderson had a sacrifice fly in the second to tie it at 2.

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