St. Louis Post-Dispatch
July 24, 2002

Morris Muzzles Giants Again

By Joe Strauss

SAN FRANCISCO — His mannerisms, his breaking ball and his focus have gradually returned to Matt Morris. Any doubters need only inquire with the San Francisco Giants.

Morris (12-6) again resembled a dominant pitcher Tuesday night at Pac Bell Park by stifling a lineup missing left fielder Barry Bonds, second baseman Jeff Kent and right fielder Reggie Sanders — also known as the Giants' Nos. 3-5 hitters. Morris, offering his third solid start since his much-needed All-Star break, did what great pitchers are supposed to do: He throttled a struggling lineup and offered it no escape.

Morris shut out the Giants for eight innings and Dave Veres managed his first scoreless outing since the All-Star break as the Cardinals blanked the Giants 4-0 on seven hits before 40,453 chilled customers. Morris struck out eight, allowed only two runners to reach third base and never seemed to labor while throwing 122 pitches. He allowed six hits and walked three.

The victory bumped the Cards to 55-42, the first time they've been 13 games above .500 this season, and they maintained their 4 1/2 game lead in the NL Central. It also was their 13th win in 19 games, including eight of 12 since the All-Star break.

After entering the season's midpoint concerned about their ace's physical and mental well-being, the Cardinals have emerged with renewed confidence in Morris' vital right arm.

"I was worried there for a little while," Morris said. "Physically and mentally, I was fumbling around. The last couple games I felt good and I'm trying to get better."
A two-run, two-out double in the first inning by first baseman Tino Martinez gave the Cardinals all the scoring they would need. Center fielder Jim Edmonds followed with his second home run in as many days — his 20th of the season — to pump the lead to 3-0 against Giants starter Jason Schmidt (5-5).

The Cardinals managed 10 hits, half for extra bases and three by shortstop Edgar Renteria. They managed a baserunner in every inning except the second and pushed a runner into scoring position in seven innings. Morris' outing made their 2-for-13 success with runners in scoring position irrelevent.

Morris allowed the Giants only two singles through five innings. He didn't face multiple baserunners until the seventh inning and got double-play grounders in the sixth and seventh innings.

On facing the depleted Giants, Morris said, "I know I'm happy. Who wouldn't be? It's unfortunate a couple of them are sore and need some rest. But it's good timing for me and the Cardinals. Those guys are all-star players. Anytime you take all three of them away it definitely helps us out."

The Cardinals' third consecutive win did not come without cost. Martinez left the game after the fifth inning because of back spasms. He has been dealing with sore ribs and apparently aggravated the condition with a checked swing.

Third baseman Placido Polanco, who was smacked on the right hand with a pitch in the first, ignited a seventh-inning rally. Polanco's leadoff double was followed by another from Edmonds, who has revived after a lull earlier this month. Edmonds has reached base five times in two of the Cardinals' last six games. He reached in three of his first four at-bats Tuesday.

Unlike the shaky nature of Monday's 5-3 win, Tuesday's 4-0 lead was hardly threatened. The Giants resemble Lilliputians to Morris, who improved to 4-2 against them in eight career appearances, including 3-0 in four starts dating to last season. Tuesday's win was his second in six days against a team now rendered toothless by competent righthanded pitching.

"He's one of the top pitchers in the league," Giants shortstop Rich Aurilia said. "I don't think anybody in here should hang their head or get down. He's done this against the whole league the past couple years."

Morris force-fed the Giants an unbalanced diet of breaking pitches mixed with the occasional inside fastball. The result was a flurry of ground balls and a knee-buckling strikeout of catcher Benito Santiago in the fourth inning.

Morris had lost the feel for his breaking pitches during a difficult June. At the same time, back stiffness forced him to alter his mechanics, costing his fastball velocity and movement. A crush of personal problems, compounded by the June 22 death of Darryl Kile, caused Morris to question the importance of his craft and sapped him of his typical enthusiasm.

Morris endured nearly two months without a win against an NL team before beating the Giants 5-1 last Thursday. That game also allowed him to avert his first three-game losing streak as a starter.

Morris has since regained the 15 pounds he lost in the wake of Kile's death. Tuesday's effort showed he has remembered how to give a dominant performance.

The Giants entered the game leading the National League in home runs and slugging percentage, fourth in average and second in runs. But those numbers were built around Bonds and Kent. Bonds leads the league in slugging and on-base percentage; Kent leads in multi-hit games and ranks fourth with a .338 batting average. (Bonds is second at .343).

Morris established a reputation last season as a monster at Busch Stadium, where he is 34-17 lifetime. Tuesday, he helped polish his credentials as a force on the road. In five road starts since May 8, Morris is 4-0, allowing only one home run and never surrendering more than two runs. The only time during the run he has failed to earn a win was in the Cardinals' 10-inning 2-1 win in San Diego July 13.

Morris hasn't allowed a home run since the sixth inning of his June 19 start against the Anaheim Angels. The blast remains the only homer against him since June 2, a span of nine starts.