08/06/2006 8:45 PM ET Maturing Cain masters Rockies Rookie right-hander collects career-high 12 strikeouts By Rich Draper / MLB.com San Francisco's Matt Cain improved to 8-8 this season with Sunday's win. (Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP) SAN FRANCISCO -- Right before our eyes, we keep seeing Matt Cain grow up -- into a man, into a pitcher. While the stat sheet shows an 8-8 record and 4.62 ERA -- superficially, that's strictly mediocre -- you have to look a little deeper to discover how Cain appears to be 21 going on 30, a wiser soul than only a few months ago, a real student of the game who has learned his lessons well. The right-hander began the year 1-5 with his ERA rising into the stratosphere, but after a brief pause, slight mechanical adjustment, a short relief appearance and "settle down" advice, Cain appears to have graduated with honors. Maybe his career-high 12 strikeouts on Sunday in the Giants' 6-2 victory over the Rockies at AT&T Park wasn't his finest performance of the season -- he had a stunning, complete-game one-hitter against the A's on May 21 -- but Cain loved the timing of his latest adventure, how he felt totally relaxed and confident on the hill. "I'm definitely going to put this at the top of the list because of the situation going on with us," said Cain, who allowed six hits and two runs, helping San Francisco win only its second game in the last 13. "We needed a good start, and I wanted to do the same thing as Noah Lowry did last night and give us a chance to win." Lowry took a no-decision in a complete-game four-hitter, with the Giants' losing, 2-1, but Cain had the luxury of a 12-hit attack, including two RBIs apiece by Mark Sweeney and Pedro Feliz. And -- get this -- the young pitcher notched his first Major League RBI in a three-run sixth inning. "It's one of those things where you keep challenging guys and make people put the ball in play," said Cain of his outing, which featured the kid at his coolest. No worries, no amps racing through his psyche in the early innings, as before when he was struggling. He trusts his stuff now. "Definitely from the first inning on, I feel relaxed and calm and understand what I need to do," said Cain, explaining it's not just mindset, but perhaps the grind of the year that's helping. "I almost feel as the season wears on your body and you get a little tired ... maybe not tired, but comfortable and in a relaxed state, instead of hyper." Felipe Alou liked Cain when he first saw him as a 19-year-old in Spring Training, and the Giants manager has seen him develop from a highly rated prospect to a consistent big leaguer. Those wobbly games in April and May are ancient history -- forgotten. "He's a very steady guy," said Alou. "He's not getting that charged up to start the game. He had a lot of throws in the first couple of innings, but I don't see that happening anymore. He's coming out of the bullpen very relaxed and throwing strikes." Cain's dozen whiffs combined with ace Jason Schmidt's 16 strikeouts on June 6 against Florida give San Francisco its first starting combo to fan 12 or more batters in a game since Pete Falcone and John Montefusco accomplished that feat in 1975. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "He's a very steady guy. He's not getting that charged up to start the game. ... He's coming out of the bullpen very relaxed and throwing strikes." -- Felipe Alou, on Matt Cain -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- But Cain was especially pleased with his first RBI, as he drove in Sweeney with a hot liner to center field for the third run in the sixth off losing pitcher Aaron Cook (7-10), who lasted 5 1/3 innings, issuing five runs on nine hits. "Luckily, I hit it on the barrel and not on my hands, like the previous at-bat ," said Cain. "I didn't get the ball [as a souvenir], but hopefully there will be many more." Alou continues to stress that the bullpen needs to be cleaned, filtered and organized as the team passes the three-quarters pole, and he was happy to see new reliever Vinnie Chulk perform yet again in late innings. Chulk, who switched between Triple-A Syracuse and Toronto this year, has recorded a 2.08 ERA in seven outings since joining the club 16 days ago. He threw two shutout frames Sunday, and he has held the opposition scoreless in six of his appearances while striking out 12. When Alou is confident in a reliever, he'll test him out in late innings, and Chulk's clean eighth and ninth innings on Sunday were an eye-opener. "In this business, it's not about blowing people away -- it's about pitching," said the skipper. Chulk is a 94-mph hurler, but it's his location that's primo at the moment. "I'm eager to get the ball whenever he wants to give it to me -- whether it's the sixth, eighth, it doesn't matter," said the right-handed Chulk, who was a long reliever initially for Toronto before being demoted to the Minor Leagues, where he pitched in the latter innings. "I'm throwing now with more of a downhill plane, so it's harder to hit it on the barrel," said Chulk, who said advice from pitching coach Dave Righetti and bullpen coach Mark Gardner has increased his accuracy. "They [tell me] to keep my hand closer to my head when I throw because the ball seems to have a lot more action," said Chulk. "I feel it, and it'll be a perfect pitch. I need to do it every time." Rich Draper is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. -- MAKING COMMUNITIES TOGETHER MACOTO BANK --

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