How They Scored

ATLANTA 1ST:   R Furcal grounded out to third.  M Giles singled to center.  G 
Sheffield grounded out to third, M Giles to second.  C Jones doubled to deep 
center, M Giles scored.  A Jones grounded out to shortstop. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 
Errors)  CHICAGO CUBS 0, ATLANTA 1.

ATLANTA 2ND:   R Fick walked.  V Castilla homered to left, R Fick scored.  H 
Blanco popped out to first.  G Maddux flied out to center.  R Furcal grounded 
out to first. (2 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)  CHICAGO CUBS 0, ATLANTA 3.

CHICAGO CUBS 3RD:   P Bako grounded out to shortstop.  S Mitre singled to 
center.  T Goodwin doubled to deep center, S Mitre to third.  T Hubbard ran for 
T Goodwin. M Grudzielanek doubled to shallow right, S Mitre scored, T Hubbard to 
third.  S Sosa grounded out to first, T Hubbard scored, M Grudzielanek to 
third.  M Alou flied out to center. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)  CHICAGO CUBS 2, 
ATLANTA 3.

ATLANTA 3RD:   T Hubbard in center field. M Giles singled to center.  G 
Sheffield singled to left, M Giles to second, M Giles to third on error by left 
fielder M Alou. C Jones singled to right, M Giles scored, G Sheffield to 
second.  A Jones singled to left, G Sheffield scored, C Jones to second.  R 
Fick singled to left, C Jones scored, A Jones to second.  V Castilla grounded 
out to pitcher, A Jones to third, R Fick to second.  H Blanco intentionally 
walked.  G Maddux hit sacrifice fly to center, A Jones scored, R Fick to third. 
 R Furcal flied out to center. (4 Runs, 5 Hits, 1 Error)  CHICAGO CUBS 2, 
ATLANTA 7.

ATLANTA 4TH:   M Giles hit a ground rule double to deep center.  G Sheffield 
walked.  C Jones grounded into double play, second to shortstop to first, G 
Sheffield out at second, M Giles to third. A Jones doubled to left, M 
Giles scored.  M Guthrie relieved S Mitre. R Fick flied out to left. (1 Run, 2 
Hits, 0 Errors)  CHICAGO CUBS 2, ATLANTA 8.

CHICAGO CUBS 9TH:   D Bragg in right field. M Alou grounded out to second.  E 
Karros singled to center.  L Harris singled to left, E Karros to second, 
E Karros to third, L Harris to second on error by left fielder C Jones.
A Gonzalez struck out swinging.  P Bako doubled to left, E Karros and
L Harris scored.  T O'Leary hit for M Remlinger. T O'Leary struck out
swinging. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 1 Error)  CHICAGO CUBS 4, ATLANTA 8.

Game Story

ATLANTA (Ticker) -- Sergio Mitre had much better success 
hitting Greg Maddux than pitching against him.

Mitre singled off Maddux but was pounded in his major league
debut as the Chicago Cubs suffered an 8-4 loss to the Atlanta
Braves.

"It was very exciting for me," Mitre said.  "I was looking
forward to this when I got called up. It's definitely an
experience that I am going to take with me for a long time."

Mitre made the jump from Class AA West Tennessee of the Southern
League, where he was 6-7 with a 3.79 ERA in 18 starts.  The
22-year-old righthander had a large, loud family contingent in a
section behind home plate.

That didn't help against the Braves, the top hitting team in the
National League.  Mitre was roughed up for eight runs, 10 hits
and three walks in 3 2/3 innings, failing to get out of any
inning without allowing a run.

"Obviously, it was a tough night," Mitre said.  "I'd like to do
a lot better. They're the hottest team in the league. I kept the
ball up.  Unfortunately, I made a few mistakes and they don't
miss them."

"It was a tough night for him, a tough assignment," Cubs manager
Dusty Baker said.  "He gave it his best. His balls found a lot
of holes. They can hit.  Once they get hitting, they can roll a
lot of hits in succession."

The highlight of Mitre's night came in the third, when he
singled off Maddux to start a two-run rally that cut the deficit
to 3-2.

"It's exciting.  He's a Hall-of-Famer in a couple of years,"
Mitre said.  "I was swinging at anything close and I just
happened to get a base hit."

But in the bottom half, Mitre gave up five straight hits as the
Braves scored four runs.

Maddux (9-8) was sharp in notching his 282nd career win.  The
four-time Cy Young Award winner gave up two runs and five hits
in seven innings, striking out two without a walk as he moved
above .500 for the first time this season.

"It's about time," said Maddux, who improved to 11-3 against his
former team.  "A long way to go.  I have to keep it going."

"Maddux was really on top of his game," Braves manager Bobby Cox
said.  "I thought he really threw the ball well. He gave us
innings. He's starting to throw the ball really well.  He looked
good tonight. The threw good. He was almost flawless."

Since the 1991 All-Star break, Maddux is 133-4 when receiving
five or more runs.  Ironically, he came into this start having
received the second-lowest run support in the National League.

"I got a lot of runs. It makes it a lot easier," Maddux said.
"The offense has been very good.  When you get four or five
runs, it makes it easier to pitch. It changes a lot when a team
puts up a lot of runs."

Kevin Gryboski mopped up for the Braves, who have won six of
seven and 14 of 16.  Every Atlanta starter had a hit except
Maddux, who drove in a run.

After consecutive 20-hit games, the offensive problems
resurfaced for the Cubs, who did something about it.  During the
game, they acquired third baseman Aramis Ramirez and center
fielder Kenny Lofton in a trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

"It's something that we have been looking for a long time," Cubs
slugger Sammy Sosa said.  "This was the time for the team to
make a move.  We got a third baseman and center fielder that was
going to help the ball club. I think it's awesome. We have a
chance to win the division. It's going to be OK."

"I didn't think we absolutely had to make the move," ace
righthander Kerry Wood said.  "We've been swinging the bats well
the last few games. It makes the team a better ballteam.  To
have (Ramirez) on your side and to have Lofton, it makes us a
better team."

In the first, Marcus Giles singled with one out and scored on a
two-out double by Chipper Jones.

Mitre walked Robert Fick to open the second before Vinny
Castilla launched his 16th homer deep into the left-center field
seats to make it 3-0.

In the top of the third, Mitre singled and went to third on a
double by Tom Goodwin, who strained his left hamstring on the
play and left the game.  Mark Grudzielanek plated a run with a
bloop double and Sosa pushed home another with a groundout.

Giles and Gary Sheffield opened the bottom half with singles and
Chipper Jones, Andruw Jones and Fick followed with RBI hits for
a 6-2 lead.  Later in the frame, Maddux got a measure of
revenge against Mitre with a sacrifice fly.

Doubles by Giles and Andruw Jones in the fourth ended Mitre's
night.

"I didn't want to keep the kid in too long and let him get beat
up," Baker said.

Atlanta improved to 17-6 against the National League Central
Division.