Glavine mows down Cards

Floyd tags two home runs in Mets' 2-0 triumph

? Tom Glavine has a reputation as a thinking man’s pitcher, slick instead of quick, smart instead of swift.

There are times, though, when he thinks he thinks too much.

Glavine was stuck in a rut, beaten up badly in his last three starts for the New York Mets. And at age 39, with opposing hitters batting .333 against him, people were beginning to wonder if the third winningest active pitcher might be done.

“A lot has been said and written about whether I was at the end of the rope,” Glavine said Friday night.

Turns out there’s plenty of rope left.

Glavine was brilliant, limiting St. Louis to four hits over seven-plus innings and benefiting from two huge home runs by Cliff Floyd to beat the Cardinals, 2-0, for his 264th career victory. Only Roger Clemens (330) and Greg Maddux (307) are ahead of him.

“It’s big to resurrect yourself,” he said. “I felt good warming up but I felt good warming up in my last three starts so I didn’t pay much attention to that.”

Those starts had bordered on horrible — 19 runs and 29 hits in 14 innings. When Glavine worked a 1-2-3 first inning Friday night, it seemed a major achievement.

“Sometimes, you overthink and your brain gets in the way. All of us want instant gratification,” he said. “When we don’t see that gratification, it’s tough.”

New York's Tom Glavine delivers against St. Louis. Glavine limited the Cardinals to four singles in seven-plus innings, and the Mets won, 2-0, Friday night in New York.

Glavine (2-4) just did what he’s always done, pitching on the edges, inside, outside, fooling the Cardinal hitters.

“You locate pitches and your confidence builds,” he said. “Sometimes, you’ve got to turn your brain off and trust yourself to pitch, getting back to what you’ve always done well. It seems so simple.”

Manager Willie Randolph said he never lost faith in Glavine.

“I knew he had it in him,” Randolph said. “I never worried about him. He has the track record. It’s just a matter of time until he finds it.”

Floyd hit his ninth and 10th home runs, two 400-plus foot shots against Jason Marquis (5-2). His homer in the second inning hit the scoreboard in right-center field and traveled an estimated 425 feet. He connected again in the seventh, this one an estimated 415 feet.

Dodgers 7, Braves 4

Los Angeles — Milton Bradley answered Adam LaRoche’s eighth-inning grand slam with one of his own in the bottom half, and Los Angeles defeated Atlanta in a matchup of first-place teams.

Dodgers starter Jeff Weaver took a three-hitter and a 2-0 lead into the eighth.

Padres 3, Marlins 2

San Diego — Ramon Hernandez doubled in the go-ahead run in the seventh inning, and San Diego beat Josh Beckett and Florida, the Padres’ 11th win in 14 games. Adam Eaton (5-1) won his third straight start for the Padres, who beat the Marlins for just the fifth time in 19 games since 2002.

Rockies 18, Diamondbacks 3

Denver — Clint Barmes hit two homers, had a career-high five RBIs and made a leaping grab at shortstop to help Jeff Francis win for the first time in a night game, lifting Colorado over Arizona. Barmes finished 3-for-6, hitting a solo homer in the fourth inning, a three-run shot in fifth and a run-scoring double in Colorado’s nine-run seventh.

Phillies 12, Reds 2

Philadelphia — Todd Pratt hit a three-run homer and tied career highs with four hits and five RBIs to lift Philadelphia over Cincinnati.

Brett Myers tossed seven strong innings, and Tomas Perez had a three-run double in the seventh as the Phillies snapped a three-game losing streak. Bobby Abreu had his team-record streak of home runs in five straight games ended.

Cubs 6, Nationals 3

Washington — Aramis Ramirez led off the eighth inning with a tiebreaking homer before two errors allowed Chicago to tack on three unearned runs, and the Cubs beat Washington for their third straight victory.

Ramirez, bothered recently by back spasms, hit a 2-2 pitch off reliever Luis Ayala just to the left of the 410-foot sign in center field for his seventh home run, putting Chicago ahead, 3-2.

Brewers 4, Pirates 3

Pittsburgh — Geoff Jenkins doubled in the decisive run on a two-strike, two-out pitch in the ninth from Pittsburgh closer Jose Mesa, and Milwaukee won its 11th in 14 games by rallying past the Pirates.

Mesa, 12-for-12 in save opportunities but pitching in a non-save opportunity for the first time this season, walked pinch-hitter Jeff Cirillo to start the ninth before getting the next two batters. But Jenkins lined a 1-2 pitch into the right-field corner, helping hand the Pirates only their third loss in 10 games.

Giants 4, Astros 2

Houston — Kirk Reuter threw seven strong innings, and pinch-hitter Jason Ellison homered in the eighth, leading San Francisco over Houston for Giants manager Felipe Alou’s 900th career victory. Reuter (2-2) allowed one run and six hits and walked two. For the third time this season, Reuter didn’t record a strikeout, but benefited from two double plays.