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Reynolds, Astros Top Rockies


Shane Reynolds doesn't consider himself Houston's ace, even though everyone else seems to.

Reynolds won his fifth consecutive decision, and the Astros won a series at Enron Field for the first time with a 5-1 victory over Colorado on Wednesday night.

"He's definitely a No. 1 guy," said Colorado's Jeff Cirillo, who went 0-for-4 to snap a 15-game hitting streak. "This was the best I've ever seen him throw. If he keeps pitching like this, he's going to have an unbelievable year. He's definitely taken it to the next level."

Reynolds (5-0) pitched seven innings and allowed one run on four hits and two walks. Jay Powell and Billy Wagner pitched an inning each, with Wagner allowing a hit to complete a five-hitter.

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Game Summary

Baseball features:

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  • Team Reports
  • Reynolds is off to the best start of his career after five decisions, and the five-game winning streak ties his career high. He is 2-0 at home and is the only Astros starter to record a victory at Enron Field.

    Reynolds said he doesn't want his success to put him in the spotlight.

    "Some guys enjoy that and want it, but leave me in the background," he said. "I just want to make my 30-35 starts and keep my team close."

    Reynolds held the Rockies hitless until the fourth inning.

    "He has just been outstanding this year," Astros manager Larry Dierker said. "In my mind, he's been our ace all of these years. He hasn't always had the most wins, but he's been the best pitcher. That's why I have started him Opening Day each year. Maybe this will be the year he gets those 20 wins."

    Mitch Meluskey and Jeff Bagwell homered for the Astros, who dropped their first four series at the new ballpark before taking two of three from the Rockies. The Astros are 5-10 at Enron Field, where 54 homers have already been hit, compared to 118 all last season at the Astrodome.

    Bagwell hit his 10th homer in the third, giving the Astros a 4-0 lead off Masato Yoshii (1-4), who pitched 5 2-3 innings and allowed five runs on seven hits and two walks. He struck out seven.

    "I don't know what to say except Reynolds was great," Rockies manager Buddy Bell said. "I was very impressed with the way he changed speeds and his control. When you face a guy like that, you have to get a couple of breaks to beat him, and we didn't get any."

    Meluskey's two-run homer in the second put Houston ahead 3-0. Meluskey's fourth homer of the season also scored Richard Hidalgo, who walked. Hidalgo later singled home a run in the sixth.

    Roger Cedeno and Craig Biggio had back-to-back triples in the first, giving the Astros a 1-0 lead.

    The Rockies ended Reynolds' shutout bid in the seventh when Jeffrey Hammonds tripled and scored on a sacrifice fly by Terry Shumpert.

    Notes

  • Larry Walker had two of the Rockies' five hits, a double and a triple.
  • Even with Wednesday's 0-for-4, Cirillo is batting .444 (12-for-27) since April 30.
  • Bell has 199 wins as a major league manager.
  • Since April 26, Bagwell is hitting .245 (13-for-53).
  • The Rockies will not play at Enron Field again this year and haven't won a season series in Houston since 1993.

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