Caminiti’s Homers Stop Rockies, 11-5

Ken Caminiti hit two three-run homers and the San Diego Padres handed the Colorado Rockies their seventh consecutive loss Thursday night, 11-5.

In the first inning, Caminiti hit a 465-foot drive into the third deck in right field, making him the first player to twice reach that spot at Coors Field. Caminiti connected again in the fourth for the 14th multi-homer game of his career.

Larry Walker homered and drove in three runs, raising his average to .401 for the Rockies.

Tony Gwynn extended his hitting streak to 15 games by going two for six, leaving him at .393, as the Padres stopped a three-game losing streak.

Andy Ashby (5-5) pitched the first six innings and gave up nine hits and five runs.

Caminiti homered during a four-run first inning against John Burke (2-5). Burke was pressed into an emergency start when scheduled starter Kevin Ritz experienced soreness in his right shoulder.

Caminiti followed singles by Quilvio Veras and Gwynn with his homer to right. Steve Finley scored on a groundout by Chris Gomez.

Walker had a sacrifice fly and Andres Galarraga had a run-scoring double in the first.

John Flaherty singled home in the Padres third for a 5-2 lead.

Caminiti homered for the second time in the fourth. Rickey Henderson walked and the inning was kept alive when second baseman Eric Young dropped a throw on a potential inning-ending double play on a ball hit by Gwynn.

Caminiti hit the foul pole in right, his eighth homer of the year, and San Diego led 8-3.

Walker hit his 26th homer in the fifth. Finley’s sacrifice fly and RBI singles by Gomez and Flaherty in the eighth off reliever Jerry Dipoto gave the Padres a 11-5 lead.

Galarraga snapped a string of 55 innings for Colorado without getting a hit with a runner in scoring position with a first inning RBI double.