Ubaldo Jimenez’s raw heat was no match for Chipper Jones’ magic bat.
Jones, hitting .403, broke open a scoreless game with a two-run, bases-loaded single in the fifth inning, opening the door for the Braves’ 7-1 rout tonight at Coors Field. It was just the 10th road victory of the season for Atlanta.
Braves rookie starter Jair Jurrjens showed Jimenez what a little polish and a lot of control can do. The 22-year-old right-hander muffled Rockies bats for 7 2/3 innings, allowing no runs on eight hits. He struck out seven and walked only two. He improved to 7-3 and his seven victories lead all major league rookies.
There were times when Jimenez flashed his usual brilliant stuff, the scoreboard registering his fastball at 96 mph. In the third, for instance, he struck out Jones with a heater. The bat never left Jones’ shoulder on the strikeout pitch. Jimenez then struck out Mark Teixeira with a biting slider to end the inning.
But inconsistencies and lack of first-pitch command continue haunting Jimenez. When he fell behind Jones in the fifth, it was not a good omen. Jones waited patiently for his pitch and ripped the ball to right field on a 3-1 count. The Braves added another run on Teixeira’s infield groundout, staking a 3-0 lead. That was it for Jimenez, who despite all of his promise, fell to 1-7.
Though Jimenez struck out seven Braves, he also walked five and needed 110 pitches to get through five innings. Contrast that to Jurrjens, who needed just 103 pitches in his nearly eight innings of work.
Atlanta tucked the game away in the seventh, ganging up on reliever Matt Herges for three hits, with Jeff Francoeur’s two-run double the decisive blow.
The Braves added two more runs in the ninth off struggling former closer Manuel Corpas, whose ERA ballooned to 6.37.
The Rockies’ lone run came in the ninth on a pinch-hit, RBI single by Scott Podsednik.
Tonight’s game was a makeup for an April 10 game that was snowed out. The Rockies open a three-game series against the Cleveland Indians on Tuesday night.
Patrick Saunders: 303-954-1428 or psaunders@denverpost.com
