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When Vince Velasquez is calm and composed Wil Lutz Jersey , he’s tough to beat.

Velasquez took a no-hitter two outs into the seventh inning, Rhys Hoskins and Nick Williams hit solo homers, and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Colorado Rockies 9-3 Thursday.

Trevor Story lined Velasquez’s 105th pitch – a curve – to left for an RBI double, ending Velasquez’s bid for the fourth no-hitter in the majors this season.

”That was as confident as I’ve ever seen him,” manager Gabe Kapler said. ”His demeanor was calm and relaxed.”

Velasquez (5-7) got a standing ovation as he walked off the mound after the hit. The hard-throwing righty looked nothing like the pitcher who allowed 10 runs against the Brewers last Friday. He dominated the Rockies, giving up one hit and two runs with six strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings.

”I was comfortable all the way through,” he said. ”I just wanted to have a solid bounce-back.”

Velasquez retired 20 of the first 21 batters. He walked Gerardo Parra in the second and picked him off. Velasquez walked Carlos Gonzalez before Story’s double. Tommy Hunter entered and allowed an RBI single to Parra to cut Philadelphia’s lead to one run before getting the final out of the inning.

”That can be him every time out. He has that stuff,” Hoskins said of Velasquez.

The Phillies won a series for the first time since taking two of three from Atlanta on May 21-23. They’re 7-12 since.

Colorado has lost 10 of 13.

Rockies starter German Marquez (4-7) gave up six runs and seven hits in six-plus innings. Rockies manager Bud Black finally pulled Marquez with the bases loaded after 112 pitches.

”It’s a shame that Marquez got tagged with as many runs that he did,” Black said. ”He threw the ball pretty well.”

Hoskins drove a first-pitch fastball into the left-field seats to give the Phillies a 1-0 lead in the first. It was his eighth homer and second since returning last Saturday from a fractured jaw.

Williams lined his eighth homer out to right in the second for a 2-0 lead. He hit an opposite-field RBI double to left on an 0-2 pitch in the sixth to make it 3-0.

After the Rockies cut it to 3-2, the Phillies broke open the game with four runs in the bottom of the seventh.

Hoskins had an RBI double and Odubel Herrera and Carlos Santana followed with run-scoring singles. Hoskins added an RBI single in the eighth Dee Ford Jersey , finishing a triple shy of the cycle.

ROOKIE GOES DEEP

Colorado’s Ryan McMahon hit his first major league home run in the eighth off reliever Hector Neris.

STORY’S STREAKING

Story drove in his 50th run in his 68th game. He leads the NL in RBIs. Since June 1, Story is batting .388 (19-49) with seven doubles, three homers and 11 RBIs.

HONORING THOME

Jim Thome, who will enter the Hall of Fame in July, was honored before the game on the 14th anniversary of hitting his 400th homer in the first season of Citizens Bank Park.

OWNING THE SERIES

The Phillies are 44-25 against the Rockies since 2008.

HIT PARADE

The Phillies had 13 hits, most since 13 on April 13 at Tampa Bay. Five players had multi-hit games.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Rockies: Reliever Adam Ottavino (oblique) was activated from the 10-day disabled list. Lefty Jerry Vasto was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque.

Phillies: Reliever Pat Neshek (shoulder, forearm) and righty Jerad Eickhoff (numbness in fingers) were scheduled to throw bullpen sessions.

UP NEXT

Rockies: RHP Chad Bettis (4-1, 4.40 ERA) takes the mound in the opener of a three-game interleague series at Texas. LHP Yohander Mendez starts for the Rangers.

Phillies: RHP Jake Arrieta (5-4, 2.97 ERA) makes his second start against the Brewers in six days. Arrieta allowed five runs – four earned – in 5 1/3 innings in a 12-3 loss last Saturday.

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Saints punter Thomas Morstead figured he had a good command of his value after nine NFL seasons, and he had no interest in playing or living anywhere but New Orleans.

Morstead said Friday that he has signed a new five-year Thurman Thomas Jersey , $20 million contract with the Saints.

He told The Associated Press that his new contract begins in the current league year, replacing the final year of his previous contract that was due to expire after next season. The deal guarantees $9 million over the first two seasons and includes the possibility for additional bonuses, Morstead said.

The 32-year-old Morstead served as his own agent on what is his third NFL contract since being drafted in 2009 and helping New Orleans capture its only Super Bowl championship as a rookie.

The Saints ”approached me about doing (a new contract) and we love living in New Orleans,” said Morstead, who is raising a family in the city. ”They extended me early after my third year and they extended me again after my ninth. And I didn’t have any feeling in my body that the grass is greener elsewhere. We love New Orleans. We love our neighbors. I love playing for (Saints coach) Sean (Payton). There’s a tremendous amount of stability and we were thrilled at the chance to stick around.”

Morstead has averaged 47 yards per punt during his career. That ranks third all-time in the NFL, less than a yard behind the averages of the two players ahead of him, Shane Lechler and Johnny Hekker.

Last season, Patriots coach Bill Belichick raved about Morstead before facing the Saints in Week 2, saying the only way to prepare for the Saints punter is to ”take the JUGS machine, crank it up on high and shoot the ball about 65 to 70 yards downfield Jonathan Stewart Jersey , a yard from the sideline like he does most of the time. … There are not many guys who can punt the ball like him.”

Morstead said he made the goal of striving for elite consistency ever since retired quarterback Peyton Manning spoke to the Saints during training camp and urged players to think about how they want to be remembered.

”I started kind of outlining qualitative goals about what people would say about me,” Morstead said. ”There’s a lot of value in having a specialist that there’s not a lot of ups and downs with.”

”It’s not just about hitting bombs, hitting high punts,” Morstead added. ”It’s good distance with good hang time in a corner that pins guy with quick get-off. I’m really proud of the standards that we’ve set.”

Morstead also has enjoyed a surge in popularity in Minnesota – if not nationally – since he volunteered to return to the field from the locker room, despite having injured his ribs, so Minnesota could formally complete its dramatic, last-second playoff victory over the Saints by running a required point-after attempt. Morstead was the first Saints player out of the locker room. The Vikings took a knee, not needing to score on the play.

Afterward, Morstead noticed a surge of donations from Minnesota to his What You Give Will Grow foundation, which benefits children undergoing hospital treatment for serious illnesses. Morstead returned to Minneapolis during the Super Bowl to present a check for a little more than $221 Trent Taylor Jersey ,000 to Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota. He also donated $120,000 to similar efforts in Louisiana.

Morstead’s deal is one of a handful of moves by New Orleans since the beginning of free agency on Wednesday. Those include the signings of cornerback Patrick Robinson to what his agent, Ron Butler, said was a four-year, $20 million deal; linebacker Demario Davis to a reported three-year, $24 million contract; and defensive end Alex Okafor to a two-year extension for a reported $10 million.

The Saints have also added veteran quarterback Tom Savage as a potential backup to Drew Brees, who signed a two-year, $50 million extension the day before free agency started.

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